Page 29 - Harnett Life Winter 2020
P. 29

taking a broader view of the economic landscape. “The tradi-  at the project,” Swindell says. “But we like to take advantage
       tional methodology of hanging a help-wanted shingle out in   of everything the college offers, like recruitment and job fairs,
       front and getting a lot of applicants just isn’t working.”  and then we saw a bigger opportunity for something like the
                                                                 Skilled Trades Academy.
       To solve that problem, Champion Homes joined forces with
       Central Carolina Community College to develop an innovative   “There are a lot of moving pieces.”
       plan that combines resources across the college and beyond.
                                                                 It sounds good to Johnson and Champion Homes. They just
       CCCC  Industry  Training  Director  Cathy  Swindell  says  dis-  need to fill those 50 jobs as quickly as possible before looking
       cussions began with the kind of typical customized training   to the future and maybe adding even more. “When you’re in
       program community colleges design for local  industry. But   our position, you have a lot of lines in the water and this option
       she quickly saw there was more the college could do to help   gets to the youth through educational avenues to let them know
       Champion Homes, given the specific challenge the company   there are good jobs out there,” he said. “Even if they believe
       was facing, and she saw how something more comprehensive   they lack the skill sets now, CCCC and Champion in Lillington
       could develop a new pool of expertise that would benefit the   are willing to educate them until they feel comfortable with
       community as a whole.                                     the manufacturing environment. And that’s good for all of us.”
                                                                 To learn more about Central Carolina Community College and
       Step One was to help interested workers quickly develop the   its programs, visit www.cccc.edu.
       broader skills needed to seize opportunity in the construction
       industry. To do that, CCCC Continuing Education worked with
       the National Center for Construction Education and Research
       to create CCCC’s new Skilled Trades Academy, a short-term
       credentialing program that teaches general construction skills
       — including core construction techniques, safety procedures,
       drawing interpretation and related topics. Swindell says this
       kind of training makes local graduates especially attractive to
       the entire construction industry, whether they end up working
       in manufacturing housing or somewhere else.

       Then, CCCC developed ways for Champion Homes to sponsor,                        MATTHEWS
       recruit and hire many of those newly trained workers — and
       other already-skilled workers in the area — as quickly as pos-   Construction & Remodeling
       sible by drawing on its expertise in workforce development.
       And, finally, the college has finalized plans to provide custom-    VINYL WINDOWS & SIDING
       ized training in the Lillington facility to help new employees   "WE ARE COVID-FREE AND FOLLOWING CDC
       specialize those broader construction skills to the specific kind    GUIDELINES FOR YOUR SAFETY!!!"
       of work required to produce manufactured housing in Lilling-
       ton. That phase of the project will begin in coming months, as
       students emerge from the Skilled Trades Academy with their
       new construction credentials.


       It’s a truly collaborative arrangement. There’s CCCC Continu-
       ing Education and CCCC Industry Services providing the train-
       ing, before and after employees are hired. But the project also
       includes CCCC YouthBuild, an educational program providing
       free tuition and personal development opportunities for young
       people who have faced specific challenges to finishing high
       school and achieving their career goals. The Triangle South        Don and Cody Matthews
       Workforce Development Board is also involved with recruit-
       ing and career counseling. And, of course, there’s the National      Remodeling Specialists
       Center for Construction Education and Research that promotes   NO JOB TOO BIG OR TOO SMALL!!
       standardized training for the construction industry and accred-         matthewscandr@gmail.com
       its credentialing program for more than 70 craft areas.       www.matthewsconstructionandremodel.com


       “This has become a lot bigger than when we started looking               910-263-7800
   24   25   26   27   28   29   30   31   32   33   34