Elke Pritchard is the full-time Trades Success Centre Coordinator at Okanagan College in Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada, where she applies more than 25 years of post-secondary instructional experience to her work with vocational and trades students. Her background encompasses teaching, academic assistance, student testing, curriculum design, online instruction, accessibility support, and project management. She specializes in supporting post-secondary students with learning needs associated with ADHD, autism spectrum disorder, dyslexia, dysgraphia, dyscalculia, nonverbal learning disabilities, and acquired brain injury.
In her current position, Elke works alongside a part-time coordinator to support students across trades programs and training levels, from foundation programs through successive years of apprenticeship training. She created the Trades Success Centre as a pilot program and developed a broad collection of instructional resources for the college’s trades programs. Her responsibilities involve collaboration with students, instructors, administrators, Accessibility Services, and other internal and external contacts.
Elke’s instructional work addresses the mathematical and scientific competencies required within specific trades. She assists carpentry students with geometry, trigonometry, concrete work, excavations, stairs, and roofing concepts; plumbing students with hydraulics, buoyancy, gas laws, and heat transfer; and electrical students with circuits, capacitance, impedance, vectors, and power calculations. Her support also extends to automotive, recreational vehicle, sheet metal, welding, Culinary Arts, Pastry Arts, and Professional Cook programs, along with preparation for trades entrance examinations.
Curriculum development is central to Elke’s professional practice. She has developed and implemented college course materials, prepared e-learning lessons and examinations, and created a basic mathematics textbook for trades students with supplemental problem sets. Her experience with Moodle and Zoom enables her to provide online instruction and learning support, while her project management skills support initiatives from inception through completion.
Elke also brings more than three years of experience as a college Student Services Coordinator. She has assessed vulnerable students in post-secondary settings, developed individualized learning plans, administered specialized assessments, evaluated outcomes, and facilitated workshops on study and test-taking skills. She has tutored undergraduate students in academic writing and English and provides ongoing learning-strategy assistance to a doctoral candidate with special needs.
Her accessibility work includes coordinating accommodations such as additional examination time, reduced-distraction testing environments, scribing, and alternative verbal testing. Elke has invigilated examinations for students with disabilities and worked closely with Accessibility Services to align support with individual requirements. Her administrative background also includes 12 months of service as acting director at a private career college.
Elke earned a Bachelor of Arts in History from the University of British Columbia in 1993, with additional studies in English and anthropology. She completed a Master of Education at the University of British Columbia Okanagan in 2015, with a focus on curriculum development. Outside her professional responsibilities, she sings in a choir.
Looking ahead, Elke is interested in consulting opportunities, professional networking, and international connections with others working in post-secondary education. She hopes to continue expanding her knowledge through exchanges with professionals in related fields. WWA members are encouraged to connect with Elke to share perspectives on trades instruction, curriculum development, accessibility, and post-secondary student support.