One Big Idea: Bring Skilled Trades to Students

As a Career Advisor and Youth Service Coordinator with CareerForce Moorhead, Deb Grant helps youth learn about job possibilities as they exit their high school years. One key to that process, Grant said, is exposing students to opportunities they never knew existed.

“We tell kids anything is possible, but one student had an excellent reflection for me,” said Grant. “She said, how can I know what I want to be if I do not know what is out there?”

With that in mind, Grant found the perfect opportunity for her students with Big Ideas, a non-profit organization from New Ulm that provides opportunities to discover, explore and learn real-world trade skills. The organization offers in-person classes, but also has a “Roadshow,” which involves bringing their instruction to clients. The Mobile Learning Lab is a semi-trailer filled with three classrooms of immersive virtual reality systems that simulate welding, industrial painting, CAT excavation and an Oculus based career exploration program for over 20 trades simulations.

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