Mick's story
Originally from South Australia, Mick began his working life in the abattoirs in Port Pirie. He struggled to complete Year 12, barely able to spell his own name. When he moved to Tasmania to work for Mitchell Plastic Welding, a small family-run business, the manager noticed Mick found reading and writing challenging. The manager asked if Mick wanted to improve his skills and, at 48, Mick happily accepted the challenge.
Supported by 26Ten, Mick started classes at Geeveston Community Centre in 2022. In late 2022, Mick won Employee of the Month. He aims to improve his reading and writing skills further so that one day he can become a supervisor.
This story featured on the Adult Learners Week website – #ALW2024 Learning Ambassador Mick Curtis – Tasmania – Adult Learners Week.
More success stories:
Houston's Farm - building reading and writing skills
"I said you can't read can you, and he said no. I said well, don't be embarrassed about that. We'll help you through this."
The benefits and joy for all of training in the workplace
"It changes their world. It takes people from 'oh this is as good as it gets,' to 'well maybe I could do something more than this.' And that's magic. So if your organisation has any possibility of getting a 26Ten project, run with it."
