Many women aren’t exposed to the trades at an early age and when they are, it’s clear that’s a boy thing. 

North Idaho College hopes to change that and break down the biggest barrier for many women in entering a trade: a lack of knowledge. 

On Wednesday evening women who work in manufacturing, mechanics, law enforcement, and other trades gathered for the second annual Women at Work event at NIC’s Parker Technical Center in Rathdrum. 

Women weaved their way through sets of booths where NIC programs were paired with professional counterparts in their fields. 

Katie Redman, operations manager at Buck Knives, said they enjoyed this event and other NIC job fairs largely because they have good outcomes when hiring NIC graduates. 

Redman said that a big barrier to women thinking about a career in fabrication or computer numerical control (CNC) machining is that they’re not exposed to it or related fields. 

All kids should be exposed to shop “as early as there are activities,” Redman said. 

“It’s about it being really cool that I can build this thing,” Redman said. “It’s not a boy thing, it’s not a girl thing, it’s a cool thing.” 

“It’s not a boy thing, it’s not a girl thing, it’s a cool thing.” — Katie Redman, operations manager at Buck Knives.

For Zaysha Andrews, 21, the event Wednesday was full of new ideas. Andrews and a group of women who attended the event live at Union Gospel Mission women’s shelter. 

Andrews said she now is full of ideas about programs she could enroll in at NIC and jobs to work while she learns. 

Gozzer Ranch Golf and Lake Club was one of those options. The ranch hires nearly 500 seasonal employees each summer and keeps a staff of 80 to 100 year round, said Kelly Cartwright, who manages shipping and receiving for the ranch. 

They had attended a previous job fair at NIC, which yielded dozens of applications and interviews but had few women in attendance. 

The ranch needs employees in a variety of jobs from food and beverage to grounds crew maintenance, counselors for their kids camp, and people to staff the onsite spa. 

Cartwright said there are few women who work at the ranch and she would like to see more. 

It’s a great opportunity for students to make money over the summer but there are also opportunities to grow with the ranch, she said. 

Stacy Ore, 60, just moved to the Inland Northwest and is applying for jobs that fit her broad skill set. 

“I’ve done a little bit of everything,” Ore said. 

She used Wednesday as more of a job fair, chatting up employees from companies where she already applied. 

For Brooke Kivett, 26, the Women at Work event was a chance to explore her future. Kivett is getting back on her feet as a single mom of two young children after a recent divorce. 

She’s currently in the GED program at NIC and hopes to move on to something in the STEM field after she finishes the program. 

Her math courses have been her favorite, Kivett said. Her dream is to become an engineer one day but the nursing program seems more practical at the moment.

The event not only had information about jobs and NIC programs but on scholarships and childcare. 

NIC’s Head Start program takes children based on need, said Jess Geiger, health manager. 

They serve about 250 students across 15 classrooms in Idaho’s five northern counties. 

The program is also looking for employees, Geiger said. They will pay for employee’s education if they are benefit eligible, she added.

Attendees took tours of the Parker Center and wound their way through booths, eventually settling down for a panel of NIC students and graduates. 

Danette Hanson, a student in the machining program, was one of the panelists. 

She returned to NIC after her life “just blew up.” 

“It was out of necessity,” Hanson said of why she returned to school. 

Going back to school in her 50s was intimidating, Hanson said. The first time she attended college there were no computers and certainly not smartphones, she said. 

Hanson first completed the phlebotomy program and worked in hospitals through COVID but found it wasn’t the right fit. She then focused on her jewelry business, db Artisan Works, full time before her housing situation changed and she decided to go back to school again last fall.

Adjusting to the changes has been eye-opening, Hanson said. 

She learned more about herself than machining in the first semester, she said. A teacher noticed she struggled with math and reading and suggested that she might have dyslexia. 

NIC also provided support with managing  her new schedule, helping Hanson find time to study and do all the rest of the things in her life. 

Hanson said she feels like machining is the hands-on, creative job she has been looking for. 

“This is something I can stick with and complete now,” she said.