Heather Beale (née McClellan) ‘01, a graduate of the Radio Broadcasting program, decided early in her career that, while she found the field interesting, she didn’t want to pursue a career in radio. In the 17 years since, Beale’s career has grown and changed but the remaining constant has been her love of learning. Through formal and informal opportunities Beale has continually sought to further her knowledge through education, returning to Mohawk College time and again to build upon her skills through continuing education courses. 

Four years after graduating, Beale was given the opportunity to take courses relevant to her job that would be paid for by her then-employer Workers Arts & Heritage Centre. She enrolled in Mohawk’s Continuing Education Event Planning Certificate courses, which helped her advance in her career as well as supported her passion for volunteering. From wedding planning to event administration to logistics and risk management, the event planning courses taught Beale to take care of the logistical side of things, ensuring events ran smoothly behind the scenes. 

Years later, while teaching part-time at Mohawk within the Event Planning Certificate program, her employer, Orlick Industries, took notice and offered her added responsibilities to be the company’s Training Coordinator. To support the new career change Beale enrolled in Mohawk’s Teaching the Adult Learner Certificate – fortunate to work for an employer who is focused on investing in the learning and development of their employees through a tuition reimbursement program. The program was an excellent fit, providing Beale with the skills and knowledge necessary to become a better instructor and to facilitate the learning needs of varying individuals. 

Beginning in 2014, Beale spent three years through online learning to obtain the certificate. Having previously only taken in-class courses, it took time for Beale to get used to the program’s fully online format. Once she found she could connect and collaborate with her classmates online in similar ways that she did in the classroom, she discovered she really enjoyed the online learning environment. 

The skills Beale developed through the program have made a direct impact in her work performance. Learning how to teach different types of people with varying levels of abilities was particularly useful as Beale is responsible for teaching standards compliant with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005 (AODA). Learning about the tools to build curriculum and assessments and examining ways to evaluate employees were also beneficial to her role within the company’s human resources department. 

At Orlick Industries, Beale has experienced firsthand how taking additional courses to improve a person’s skills can help them advance their career. As she sees it, continuing your education is only going to give a person a competitive advantage. "Learning from professionals and designated people that are skilled at communicating and facilitating can make a real difference in how you see things," says Beale. “Whether you’re taking an online course or an in-class course, you’re going to learn a lot from your instructors—and from your peers, too—which creates a strong network.” 

By: Meaghan Drury

This story was originally published in Spring 2018 of the Mohawk Alumni In Touch magazine.