Gary Job Corps provided a unique opportunity to learn about its health trades and for community partners to impart their knowledge on staff to improve programming.
The Workforce Industry Council is an event that gave a peek behind the curtain of what education looks like the center. It involved a tour of the classrooms and allowed professionals to interact with the teachers, both gathering information and sharing industry techniques.
Deputy Center Director Chris Roff explained that events like the WIC help to bolster employer relations as GJC is always looking for workbased learning opportunities for its students, which serve as a two-way partnership — trading free labor for on-the-job training.
A booklet was provided with information on the history of Job Corps, as well as the curriculum for several medical programs that would be explored on the tour, including Clinical Medical Assistant, Phlebotomy, EKG, Certified Nursing Assistant, Pharmacy Technician and Medical Administrative Assistant.
Before kicking off the tours, Suzanne Ritter, Gary Job Corps Career and Technical Training Manager, said they were looking to the attending medical professionals to tell them if they are “teaching and training the students to meet the employer’s needs.”
Norman Turner, Gary Job Corps Center Director, said events like the WIC helps the program ensure its students are employable.
“That requires: One — knowledge. It requires some exposure to know how you should carry yourself, and it requires some patience from us and our students,” Turner said. “We’re constantly trying to get them prepared for the next level, and you all play a huge part in that.”
Turner discussed the status of the center and addressed the recent government funding freeze that occurred in June. He said the center was at almost 1,000 students at that time but has now dropped to 350 due to program completion and the inability to bring in new students.
“So of course, our … enrollment dropped significantly, but we’re battling back,” Turner said. “Currently, we have about 400 folders of new applicants that are being prepared to be enrolled. We’re doing those in a phase of about every two weeks. We’ll bring in 30 to 40 new students [at a time].”
Learn more about Gary Job Corps training programs at this link: gary.jobcorps.gov/train.
