CNS Local Life
Michael Myles (CLICK TO ENLARGE)

(CNS Local Life): Citing underreported figures for unemployment among young people, coupled with a need to provide affordable and accessible vocational training, Michael Myles, former government at-risk youth officer, is opening a facility to teach skills that he hopes will translate into job opportunities. Inspire Cayman Training (ICT) will be offering vocational skills courses at a dedicated centre on Eastern Avenue, scheduled to open in June, as well as in Hope Academy in Grand Harbour, where Myles is the dean of students.

Though he “loved” what he did for youth in his 15 years working for government, he saw a need to help them find meaningful employment, he explained. Part of his frustration centred around what he saw as a continuing cycle of young people falling through the cracks in the system and turning to crime.

“We have well over 300 kids between the ages of 12 and 17 who, over the last five or six years, have committed more than 1,000 crimes,” he told CNS, adding that ICT is about more than teaching trade skills. “I want to help young people who have issues with mental health, drugs and alcohol. We can’t throw them away. Should everyone be put in Northward Prison? No.”

Myles believes the solution is to offer young people a pathway to employment. Towards that goal, ICT has been accredited by the National Center for Construction Education and Research (NCCER), based in the US with an international reach. The non-profit organisation was established in 1996, supported by more than 125 construction CEOs along with related associations and academic leaders, to provide standardised training for the industry.  

“My company is accredited to provide over 70 craft courses and I am certified as a Master Trainer to train journey-level professionals in the construction industry as certified instructors in their craft,” Myles explained. 

With NCCER accreditation, students who complete the courses at ICT will earn credentials in their field that are recognised in the US and 20 other countries, meaning their skills are transferrable outside of Cayman. In addition, if trainees only complete half of the required modules for certification, for example, they can join a course at an NCCER location in the US or one of their other overseas sites, without needing to start over.

The courses taught through ICT are pegged at an eighth-grade level so they are understandable, and use “simple, plain language”, Myles said, adding that students need to be able to read and do math at that level.

ICT will hold day classes at the Eastern Avenue location and night courses at Hope Academy to accommodate students who are working. The school will take those with a high school diploma or people already working in the industry but want certification.

He is also looking into the possibility of taking on a tutor for students who struggle. “I don’t want to turn away young people. Everyone should have the opportunity to do well,” he said, adding he would sit with students having difficulties academically “to figure out how to work with them”.

Among the skills on offer are plumbing; electrical; automotive maintenance and repair; carpentry; and heating, ventilation and air conditioning, trades which could lead to well-paying jobs. At the moment, the majority of people employed in craft and skilled labour in Cayman are on work permits, pointing to the potential for trained Caymanians to seek those jobs.

Before taking up training in a specific trade, the students are first required to take a series of core curriculum modules to “give the trainee the basic skills needed to continue education in any craft area he or she chooses”, according to ICT literature. In addition, there is a mandatory “Tools for Success” course that teaches students skills for job hunting such as preparing a CV, completing an application form and learning how to be interviewed, and also includes strategies for keeping a job, developing positive workplace relationships, managing stress and resolving conflicts, among many other modules.

Myles has also partnered with CUC, which has been running an NCCER-accredited programme for 15 years. For the first year, CUC will be ICT’s training sponsor since Myles does not have a background in either construction or training. CUC will oversee and audit ICT to ensure the centre is “properly equipped to NCCER expectations and standards”, he explained, adding that after a year he will be qualified to oversee ICT and NCCER will then conduct the audit.

An added benefit of the partnership is that CUC will look to ICT for recruits since they will be receiving the training required for employment at the company, which is the whole point of Inspire Cayman Training.

“We will be preparing our young people to walk into a job. We have to get our kids back into the workforce,” Myles said. “Children are giving up here. I want Caymanians to have hope.”

For more information on Inspire Cayman Training, email Michael Myles at michaelmyles1117@gmail.com