NPA | Skills for Change Graduate

2011 | Ali Al-Hamawandy

In 2007, Ali Al-Hamawandy arrived in Canada from Iraq; 18 years of project and construction management experience from Italy, Spain and United States and a Master’s degree in Hydraulic Engineering were still not enough for him to move ahead without . . . Canadian experience.

Ali was unable to reconcile his past experience as a senior engineer with his present experience of facing rejection after rejection from engineering companies in Canada.  And, when he first joined the Skills for Change Engineering Your Future Program, he could not see the sense of spending time learning again about a career he’d already spent a lifetime carrying out.

Once he realized, however, that what he was learning was vital to his getting a job in his field, he eagerly applied the job search techniques and strategies suggested to him.  His positive attitude, enthusiasm and determination led him to attend conferences, participate in seminars, seek job coaching, set up informational interviews, and find a mentor – and eventually landed him an engineering position at SNC-Lavalin Inc. in Toronto.

2010 | Tsering Dolma

As the University Settlement United Way Employee Campaign Chair in 2008, Tsering Dolma increased participation from 25% to 89% in one year. In 2009, she co-chaired the same campaign and received the Employees Award for increasing the participation rate to 96%.An active member of the Community Policing Liaison Committee (CPLC), Tsering works as a bridge between the community and the Toronto police, voicing concerns and sharing safety information with the community.

2009 | Pedro A. Vargas-Zamora

Over the two years that Pedro A. Vargas-Zamora has been in Canada, he has achieved many of the goals that he set out to reach by taking advantage of the opportunities that came his way. He enrolled in numerous language courses that not only improved his overall English language ability, but gave him the confidence to speak to others. In addition, Pedro took the initiative and conducted seminars, lectures and public presentations on safety and risk prevention to other newcomer professionals through Skills for Change.

After completing the Engineering Your Future program offered at Skills for Change, Pedro was highly motivated to give back to the program. He was inspired to do something more to develop a network for the clients. He started the Skills for Change Multi-Disciplinary Professional Group, which promotes the skills, talent, experience, dreams and energy that every individual brings and guides them in the process of starting a career in Canada.

2008 | Afshin Ebtekar

In March 2001, Afshin Ebtekar was hired by his current employer, Halsall Associates, as a structural designer; in 2004, he successfully finished the Professional Engineers Ontario (PEO) licensing process and gained his Professional Engineering designation. Now a Project Manager and shareholder with the same company, Afshin has not forgotten the path he had to travel to get there.

As soon as his own employment situation was settled, Afshin started contributing to the community. He began by giving back to the organization that had held his hand and helped him succeed in achieving his employment goals. He became a member of the Skills for Change Alumni and actively participated in its meetings. To serve those who needed help with their job search and to give back to Skills for Change, Afshin joined the Mentoring Program, a relationship he has maintained for years now. Currently he is also involved in the Group Mentoring Program offered by ICNetwork through JVS Toronto. He has also unofficially mentored a number of internationally educated engineers.

2007 | Juan Orozco

To improve his understanding of occupational terminology and workplace communication skills, Juan Orozco joined the Intensive English and employment preparation courses for internationally-trained engineers at Skills for Change. In July 2002, while finishing these courses, he got his first job in Canada as an Engineer. 

Now he is employed with RS& G Commissioning as an Electrical Commissioning Engineer. He has shown leadership in a number of prestigious projects across Ontario, including the Ottawa Hospital, Credit Valley Hospital, and the expansion to both the Greater Toronto Airport-Terminal 3 and Windsor Casino. In 2005 the Association of Energy Engineers granted him the title of Certified Energy Manager (CEM) and he received the PEO licence, which entitled him to practice as a Professional Engineer.

2006 | Kim Hoang Trinh

Once Kim Hoang had completed the clerical training and gained computer skills through the Toronto Office Skills Training Project, she found her first job as a data control clerk at the Toronto General Hospital. A few years later she found another job with added responsibilities - related to her former accounting background. Life for Kim Hoang seemed to have settled well in Canada when suddenly her husband passed away. It was her courage and strong will that saw her through this adverse period and made her resolve to go back to school and train as a social service worker.

Kim Hoang currently works as a Program Manager at the Vietnamese Association in Toronto. She has volunteered at several community service organizations such as the Dixie Bloor Neighbourhood Centre and the Phap Van Buddhist Cultural Centre. At the latter organization, Kim Hoang works with seniors and youth, organizing workshops on health issues, coordinating the Tutoring Program, and forming the heritage language project for children at the centre. She also sits on the Centre’s Advisory Board. Additionally, Kim Hoang is active in fundraising and spearheads campaigns for disaster relief.

2005 | Eric Acuna

At Skills for Change, Eric Acuna joined the six-week career planning program specifically designed for engineers. Upon completing this program, he was recommended to the agency’s Mentoring for Employment program that matched him to a mentor with an engineering background. Very soon, Eric was hired as a Process Engineer by a leading automobile manufacturing company.   For Eric this was only the beginning. He enrolled in night school at Seneca College and after completing the Quality Assurance Program, began to search for employment in his area of expertise – quality control for paper products. He is currently employed as a Quality Coordinator and I.S.O. Management Representative for a paper board manufacturer of tubes and cores for paper, film, fabric and tapes.

2004 | Julius Zombori

Arriving in Canada in 2000, Julius Zombori began applying for jobs and was disheartened when he received no response. As months passed without receiving any feedback from employers, Julius realized that he needed guidance in his job search and registered at Skills for Change where he joined the employment focused Sector-specific Information and Counseling program (STIC) targeted for internationally trained professionals. For 12 weeks, Julius studied accounting as practiced in Canada, received hands on training with accounting software, and obtained guidance on job search techniques and learned how to market his skills. He made contacts, began developing his network and found the agency’s support invaluable.

Julius Zombori has a Ph.D. and a Chartered Accountant designation from his home country, Hungary. With several years of senior managerial experience in taxation and accounting, employment with leading organizations in his home country, served as a senior faculty member of Hungary’s premier university and a research fellow at Yale University in the U.S., he hoped to find employment quickly in Toronto.

2003 | Martha Kuwee Kumsa

Martha has published a number of learned articles as well as essays and poetry. She has presented papers at conferences in Toronto, the U.S., the United Kingdom, Germany and Sweden and participates in panel discussions on issues related to human rights and freedom of expression. 
Martha is an active member of PEN International, PEN Canada, Canadian Journalists for Free Expression, the Oromo-Canadian Women’s Organization and is a founding member of Ormo Global Communities Network. She also actively volunteers for Amnesty International.

In 1996, Martha received the Helman/Hammet Award for Free Expression from Human Rights Watch in New York and, in the same year also received the Dr. Wilson Head Memorial Award for Outstanding Work in Anti-Racism, Peace and Human Rights from Atkinson College, York University.

2002 | Callista Phillips

Callista Phillips determination to become a physician in Canada meant writing the required exams which took two years to complete. In May 2001, Callista was one of the 36 out of a group of 300 candidates selected for the ‘Ontario International Medical Graduates Program.’ She is currently repeating the pre-residency and residency training before she can practice medicine in Canada.  

Although she has had to focus on her studies since her arrival in Canada, Callista has still made time to give back to the community. She encourages internationally trained physicians to get back into the medical field by sharing information and personal experience of the licensing process. She is actively involved in the Association of International Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario (AIPSO) and works to influence the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario (the provincial regulatory body) on behalf of foreign trained physicians.

2001 | Felisa Z. Serrano

In 1998, Felisa Serrano graduated from the Computerized Clerical Accounting program at Skills for Change. This program has a co-op placement component where she was assigned to the Canadian Pacific Hotel and Resorts for a two-month period. At the end of the placement, she was hired full-time as an accounting clerk and later promoted to accounts receivable analyst.

Felisa has volunteered at the Bayview Community Hospice and volunteers at Skills for Change as a guest speaker, encouraging SfC’s clients to pursue their dreams.

2000 | Ismael Cala

As a respected and well-established radio and television broadcaster in his home country of Cuba, Ismael Cala Lopez arrived in Toronto, Canada in June 1998 as a convention refugee, determined to re-establish his broadcasting career.

From 1992 - 1994, Ismael was an Associate Profession of Art History, Journalism and Radio and Television at Cuba’s Universidad de Oriente. For three years (1995- 1998) he was the producer and host of Radio Rebelde and Radio Taino for Cuban National Radio. During that time, he also began hosting the most-watched television game show in Cuba and was the Anchor of the National Cuban late night news, a position which earned him two Cuban National Awards (1995 and 1997) for Television Newsmagazine Anchor.

1999 | Ramon Pacheco

Ramon Pacheco, his wife and three small children left strife torn El Salvador for Canada in 1992. A writer of poetry and fiction and an accountant by profession, his resolve and determination were evident long before he arrived here. He became caregiver for his family when his wife was diagnosed with a serious illness shortly after the birth of twins and continued to work to support them.

1998 | Altaf Quadeer

Altaf Quadeer is a graduate of the Skills for Change CareerStart Program which paved his way to completing a teaching qualification course at York University. Skills for Change provided a referral to the Metropolitan Toronto Association for Community Living where he was employed as a social worker. He was an active participant in the volunteer teacher program at Yorkwoods Public Library for six years and in 1991 former North York Mayor, Mel Lastman, presented Altaf with the Library User of the Year Award.

In November 1992 he began an occasional teaching position with the North York Board of Education. While waiting for a full-time teaching certificate, he continued his volunteer work in the community and, in April 1992, was elected to the Board of Directors of Information Downsview. In 1996 he received a Certificate of Appreciation from the Jane/Finch Community and Family Centre for his volunteer work. In 1997 Altaf received his Certificate of Qualification from the Ontario College of Teachers. He currently teaches at Brookview Middle School and continues his volunteer work at the North York Public Library.

1997 | Yasir Ali Farah

After fleeing war-torn Somalia and spending three years in a Kenya refugee camp, Yasir Ali Farah came to Canada with his wife and three small children in September 1994, as government-sponsored immigrants. With no relatives or friends in Canada, the family stayed at the World Vision Reception Centre while looking for suitable accommodation. Dealing with malnourishment, culture shock and racism, Yasir heard about Skills for Change and enrolled in the Customer Service Program. He completed the program with a work placement at the YMCA Grosvenor Restaurant. While looking for work, Yasir enrolled in and completed a certificate in clerical accounting through the Skills for Change evening program. At the end of 1995, Yasir began working with a food retail chain and was the first Somali among the employee base. He is currently also completing courses in industrial training to enhance his employment options.

1996 | Kurnarasamy Nehru

After being arrested, detained and tortured for advocacy against human rights abuses in his native Sri Lanka, Kumarasamy fled to India with his wife and daughter. Separated from his wife when he left for Canada, they were eventually reunited in 1989.

 As a refugee, Kumarasamy was issued a work permit but could not find employment. By chance he heard about Skills for Change and enrolled in the CareerStart program, which provided computer and work-search training for foreign-trained professionals and people with accounting backgrounds. Following his graduation from this program, Kumarasamy continued to volunteer with the organization and represented graduates as a member of the board of directors. 

1995 | Muyi-Deen Ajasa

Graduating from the University of Benin in Nigeria with a degree in Political Science & Public Administration, Muyi-Deen was unable to secure employment due to the existing undemocratic political system. His student activities, enlightening local people about their political rights, made him unpopular with the government and he came to Canada as a refugee claimant in 1991. Although Muyi-Deen spoke English, he experienced discrimination in finding an apartment and work. While waiting nine months to secure a work permit, Muyi-Deen made an all out effort to gain "Canadian" work experience by volunteering with a variety of agencies including Canadian Crossroads International, Fudger House (a home for the aged) and the Canadian Mental Health Association. He then enrolled in the Skills for Change Careerstart program to gain the tools needed to improve his resume and job search skills.

1994 | Ru Lan Wang

Ru Lan emigrated to Canada in 1989 from China. She did not speak English and faced severe culture shock. While learning English through a course at George Brown College in Toronto, Ru Lan was accepted into the Skills for Change On-The-Job Training program. Combining her education at Skills for Change with her past experience as a journalist, Ru Lan applied for a receptionist position at Campus Plus and was hired into a management position within one week of graduation. She is responsible for processing national advertising for 60 campus newspapers across Canada.

1993 | Vankham Phommavong

Vankham Phommavong escaped from Laos alone at the end of 1979. She made her way to a refugee camp and in April 1980 was sponsored by the Canadian government. After receiving language training, Vankham obtained a position with the Lao Association which she held from 1981 to 1986. Eager to develop her skills, she enrolled in the Skills for Change program and upon graduation, Vankham accepted a position with The Financial Post. Since being hired, Vankham has been promoted twice and is currently a Production Co-ordinator in the Marketing Department.

In addition to her busy schedule as a full-time professional and mother, Vankham is committed to assisting other immigrants and refugees. She has been a board member of the Lao Association for four years and currently is the first female second vice-president.