Keeley Prockiw

Trailblazer recognized for leadership and advocacy in skilled trades

For Keeley Prockiw (Welder ’15), going into the trades was the lifeline she desperately needed.   

At the time, she was a single mother who had left an abusive relationship. She earned minimum wage and struggled for years to make ends meet. Then she was accepted to a program run by the non-profit organization, Women Building Futures that supports women exploring work in the trades.     

“I was on the path to changing my life,” Prockiw says of that moment.    

That paved the way for her to attend NAIT, where she earned her red seal journeyperson designation as a welder. After, she became a rope-access technician and level 3 supervisor in 2018 – at this time, she was one of only 25 female level 3 supervisors in North America. 

Today, Prockiw continues to be a trailblazer. She’s a project coordinator at PCL Industrial Management and an active, enthusiastic advocate for underrepresented groups in the trades.   

“If one person hears my story and thinks they can change their life and fight for themselves, then speaking a hundred times over has been worth it,” she says.   

Reducing barriers in the skilled trades   

As she progressed in her career, Prockiw began mentoring others. A member of NAIT’s Women in Skilled Trades Advisory Committee and speaker at the polytechnic’s Jill of All Trades events, she’s passionate about sharing her perspective. Prockiw also remains connected as a mentor at Women Building Futures.   

At the national level, she advocates to reduce barriers in the trades as a member of the Canadian Apprenticeship Forum board, to which she was elected in 2023.    

Prockiw says encouraging underrepresented groups – including women and the 2SLGTBQIA+ community – to work in the trades is one way to address the labour shortage. “We’re not tapping into these folks that can offer different skill sets that, as a group on a whole level, can just raise the level of all trades.”    

Prockiw, who is openly queer and now married, says to attract a more diverse workforce, employers need to provide workplaces where everyone feels safe.   

“One of the biggest goals I have is finding ways to make the industry safe for those folks, so they can have just as much opportunity,” as others, she says.  

For her achievements and efforts to champion underrepresented groups in the trades, Prockiw has been widely
recognized. Twice, she’s been named to the Women’s Executive Network’s Top 100 Most Powerful Women in the skilled trades. And in 2023, she received a Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal.     

Prockiw’s tenacity extends beyond the workplace. She brings her competitive spirit to the ball hockey arena as an award-winning MVP goaltender. Competing with contenders half her age for a spot on the roster, she and her team won bronze at a 2024 national ball hockey women’s championship followed by gold at an international competition. (She was later named MVP goaltender.)   

Prockiw is proud of what she’s achieved. And she’s proud to know that she’s set an example. Her 23-year-old daughter also works in the trades and is certified as a rope-access technician – Prockiw and her daughter are the only mother-daughter certified rope access team in the world.    

Her advice to others looking to change their careers?   

“It’s not always going to be easy,” says Prockiw. “But looking back in 10 or 15 years, it’s going to be worth it.”  

Story photos supplied by Keeley Prockiw.

Spirit of NAIT Alumni Award

The Spirit of NAIT Alumni Award is awarded to alumni who have made exceptional advances or achievements in their career within 12 years of graduation.

More 2025 NAIT Celebrates Recipients

Champions, community-builders, mentors, visionaries and leaders make up the 2025 NAIT Celebrates award recipients. Read more about the lasting impact each has made through their spirit, dedication and generosity.