Windsor-Essex classrooms to receive advanced machinery following provincial funding

Belle River District High School in Belle River, Ont., on Monday, Nov. 23, 2020. (Bob Bellacicco / CTV Windsor)

On Thursday, it was announced that nine Windsor-Essex high schools will be receiving hundreds of thousands of dollars in machinery in order to help teens prepare for future careers in tooling and machining. 

According to a press release, the province will be investing more than $748,000 to purchase high-tech machines for high schools in Windsor-Essex in order to help teens “gain the skills they need to prepare for careers in tooling and machining.”

The specifics of the funding were announced on Thursday by MPP Windsor-Tecumseh Andrew Dowie and MPP Essex Anthony Leardi, on behalf of Minister of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development, Monte McNaughton.

“Careers in the skilled trades are lucrative, well-paying, and rewarding. This investment will help put young students on the path to critical and rewarding careers, and I am thrilled to see that in our region,” said Leardi.

Equipment deliveries for the most recent round of the program began in November of 2022, and range from CNC milling centres, lathes, and plasma cutters to CNC desktop milling machines, and high precision conventional milling machines.

Each school with also received tool kits and cutting tools.

“Advanced manufacturing is the backbone of our economy in Windsor and Essex County, and there are incredible opportunities available today to establish rewarding careers in the sector right here at home in Windsor-Essex,” said Dowie.

This project by the CTMA (Canadian Tooling & Machining Association) and the Ontario Council for Technology and Education is funded through the ministry’s Skills Development Fund.

“Our goal is to expose high school students to technology at an earlier age to engage their interest for a career within our industry,” said CTMA Executive Director, Robert Cattle. “Not only does this expose students to newer technology at an earlier age, but also gives teachers up-to-date equipment to implement in their classrooms.”

Here is the full list of Windsor-Essex high schools receiving machines and the approximate dollar value of the machines:

• Belle River District High School - $113,000
• General Amherst High School - $59,000 
• Kingsville District High School - $75,000
• North Star High School - $29,000
• Riverside Secondary School - $44,000
• Vincent Massey Secondary School - $97,000
• Herman Academy Second School - $80,000
• Freedom Academy Secondary School - $99,000
• St. Anne’s High School - $67,000

“Ontario needs more skilled workers, and that starts with attracting more young people to these rewarding, well-paying and life-long careers. I want to congratulate the CTMA and OCTE for this incredible initiative,” McNaughton said.