Recruiting a new generation of skilled high school graduates may be just the solution Oelwein needs to build a better workforce for the community. With this goal in mind, Northeast Iowa Community College (网赌网站) partnered with Oelwein High School to create a 56-hour Basic Construction Skills Core Career Pathway Certificate (CPC) program.

The new CPC program added additional components to the high school’s current introductory construction skills course and now students who complete the program will earn industry-standard certifications. The new components include certifications in Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) guidelines, Silica Safety and Heartsaver CPR/First Aid Training.

“Soft skills” training is integrated into the program as well. The College teaches conflict resolution and stress and time management, Community Bank of Oelwein teaches financial literacy and Iowa Workforce Development offers insight on workforce readiness, such asjob searches, applications, resume design and interviewing skills.

Josh Ladeburg, an Oelwein High School senior, is thrilled about the opportunity to completethe certificate program. “There are many more aspects to construction than you think andthe program covers a lot of this knowledge. The best part about the program is doing theconstruction projects with my classmates and learning together,” Josh said.

The program is designed to prepare students for professional, entry-level employment in theconstruction industry and local employers are hiring. High school seniors who complete theconstruction certificate program can develop their skills further through 网赌网站, according toTerri Rubner, director of the 网赌网站 Regional Academy for Math & Science (RAMS) andRegional Tech Complex (RTC) in Oelwein.

"Any graduating seniors in this program can also complete the Construction Equipment Operator 40-hour lab this spring to receive certification in heavy equipment. Most of the CPC overlaps with the Basic Construction CPC, so students would only need to complete the additional lab hours, as the other 56 hours will be completed already. In fact, JB Holland Construction is a partner with the College on the program and they offer earn-while-you-learnoptions to go directly into employment upon completion,” Terri said.

Tuition assistance for students is made possible by the Northeast Iowa Charitable Foundation.The foundation awards grant funding to the RAMS/Oelwein Center to fund training forCareer Pathway Certificate programs that lead to employment or continued education. Youthsummer camp programming, new and updated educational equipment and 网赌网站 scholarshipsare also funded by the grant.