PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Bucks County Community College (BCCC) and the Philadelphia Building and Construction Trades Council signed a five-year partnership to create a free pre-apprenticeship program, the first of its kind in Pennsylvania.
BCCC President Dr. Felicia Ganther said the program will provide a gateway into family-sustaining careers in the unionized construction industry.
“What our program does really sets the individuals up for success,” she said. “It gets them to understand what is going to be evaluated, what’s going to be assessed, what you are going to be tested on. What are the components that you need to have an understanding of in order to be successful overall? Not only that, it provides the student with OSHA training and aerial platform lift safety certification.”
Students will learn from industry experts during the 11-week program. It starts on April 10 with an inaugural class of eight students. Officials anticipate accommodating as many as 32 students over the next two years.
“There has been an increase in apprenticeships and pre-apprenticeships, federally and state, and we wanted to make sure that we have a program in our county to make sure that those who are interested in going through an apprenticeship have the opportunity to do that,” Ganther said.
The program is funded through a Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry PAsmart grant.
Related
Related
