Local finalists for state training honours

Two Geraldton talents — one just starting out in his career and the other two decades into her chosen profession — have been honoured as vocational success stories, named finalists in the 2021 WA Training Awards.

Apprentice chef Taj Morris and conservation lecturer Dr Maryke Gray are among 37 finalists from across the State vying for the awards to be announced in September.

One of three finalists for the WA school-based apprentice of the year, Mr Morris, 18, of Glenfield, comes from a family deeply immersed in the food industry.

His grandparents run Geraldton foreshore favourite Skeetas, where he works closely with his mother, head chef Hayley Morris. He says working with family can be tough at times.

“Sometimes (it’s) harder on family than it is for everyone else in the kitchen, but that’s brought me to where I am today.”

Dr Gray is one of four finalists for WA trainer of the year. She has more than 20 years of experience in conservation management and teaches the subject from Certificate I up to Diploma.

Alongside teaching, she is involved in projects on the Abrolhos Islands, as well as working with remote Aboriginal communities throughout the Mid West and Gascoyne regions.

Her work has already won her an Australian Training Award. In 2018, Dr Gray and her team won the industry collaboration award for their work in restoring habitats on the Abrolhos Islands.

The project helped train more than 200 students.

“I love involving students with projects that are conducted in collaboration with industry as the students not only benefit from meeting and working with industry, who are also potential employers, but also get the opportunity to work on real projects,” she said.

Central Regional TAFE Geraldton acting managing director Joanne Payne sees the awards as a great opportunity for students to gain recognition in their industries. “It’s great to see our students having such success, and having that recognised at a State level is a fantastic thing,” she said. “To see some individual students and lecturers being highlighted is a particular moment of pride for us.”

In addition to the recognition and respect the awards bring, winners will receive $3000 in prize money. However, Mr Morris does not want to count his chickens before they hatch.

“I don’t want to get ahead of myself and say ‘yep, that $3000 is mine, what am I going to spend it on?’,” he said.

Winners will be announced at a ceremony on September 17, with a select few going on to represent WA in the Australian Training Awards in November.