{"id":845,"date":"2022-08-24T00:20:26","date_gmt":"2022-08-24T00:20:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/djcoregon.com\/skilledmag\/?p=845"},"modified":"2023-08-25T20:15:03","modified_gmt":"2023-08-25T20:15:03","slug":"from-classroom-to-career","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/djcoregon.com\/skilledmag\/2022\/08\/24\/from-classroom-to-career\/","title":{"rendered":"From Classroom to Career"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Wolfer\u2019s

Wolfer\u2019s Training Academy students Emily Roche, Michael Bolton, Lane Blackmon and Darian Crawford. Photo by Chris Penn.<\/p><\/div>\n

From Classroom to Career<\/h2>\n

Training opportunities aim to address labor shortage<\/h4>\n

By Melody Finnemore
\n91ÊÓƵ Contributor<\/strong><\/p>\n

When Wilsonville-based Wolfer\u2019s Home Services saw that there were not enough technicians to fill the positions left when tradespeople retired, it addressed the labor shortage in HVAC services by establishing Wolfer\u2019s Technical Academy.<\/p>\n

The academy recently held its second session and gives students an opportunity to receive a professional certification as an alternative to going to a four-year college. It also offers a viable option for people who want to change career paths. Wolfer\u2019s training program is approved by the VA for GI Bill benefits, including the post-9\/11 GI Bill and Chapter 35 benefits, according to the company.<\/p>\n

The curriculum consists of four levels that include HVAC fundamentals, basic and intermediate skills, followed by advanced skills and customer interaction training. Students are paid to learn the trade and, upon graduation, they are guaranteed a spot on the Wolfer\u2019s team. The academy\u2019s motto is \u201cLearners today, Leaders tomorrow.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cEveryone here at Wolfer\u2019s wants you to succeed,\u201d Darian Crawford, academy student and Wolfer\u2019s employee, said in a news release. \u201cThey do everything they can to help you and they have a wealth of knowledge open for anyone that wants to tap into it. It\u2019s a great work environment that is always promoting growth.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPursing a stable and meaningful career attracted me to the trades,\u201d shared Devon Oppenlander, an academy student, in the news release. \u201cI am excited to be able to provide for myself while providing a meaningful and much-needed service for customers when they need it most.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOur first group of academy students were beyond impressive,\u201d noted Tim Daley, Wolfer\u2019s Home Services general manager. \u201cI found their dedication to their new craft and their zeal to learn to be authentically inspiring.\u201d<\/p>\n

Wolfer\u2019s recently received the Training Excellence Award from Lennox Industries\u2019 Portland\/Seattle District for its commitment to training and learning.<\/p>\n

Knife River Training Center<\/strong>
\nKnife River Corp. also is striving to bolster the labor force through its new training center on a 230-acre campus in Albany. The training center features an 80,000-square-foot heated dome with a dirt arena for equipment training. It is the largest such dome in the United States and includes a concrete viewing platform with cutting-edge audio-visual equipment.<\/p>\n

The 16,000-square-foot training building houses four classrooms ranging in occupancy from 15 to 350, depending on configuration. The rooms are equipped with the latest technology. The building also features a 2,400-square-foot enclosed patio and an on-site kitchen for catering.<\/p>\n

Outdoor training facilities include haul roads, maritime training and, coming this fall, \u201csim town.\u201d Sim town\u2019s mock urban environment will enable training around simulated overhead\/underground hazards and in confined spaces. Knife River is currently delivering commercial driving license and entry-level driver training, heavy equipment training, leadership and instructor development, and safety training at the center.<\/p>\n

Center Director Kris Latimer said Knife River\u2019s investment in the training center\u2019s development makes it unique.\u00a0\u201cThere are very few, if any, civil construction companies that have made this kind of investment in the development of a facility focused on developing a pipeline of workers to support the industry.\u201d
\nTo date, the center has provided training to more than 300 individuals and well over 1,200 have come through the building for various meetings and events, including a wide variety of industry partners and outside businesses.\u00a0In May, it hosted career exploration activities for 312 students from 18 high schools.<\/p>\n

NWUCA, NWCOC simulators<\/strong>
\nThe Northwest Utility Contractors Association is supporting statewide training efforts through its donation of much-needed simulator equipment to the NW College of Construction. NWUCA also has made a major investment in a simulator trailer of its own that will be used for recruitment and training. NWUCA ordered new simulators from Pape for the college as well as one for its trailer, which is being completed. NWUCA plans to take it to high schools in the fall of 2023 to promote the utility contractor trade.<\/p>\n

PCC ThinkBIG<\/strong>
\nPortland Community College recently opened its new workforce development facility dedicated to career technical education. The 16,000-square-foot Dealer Service Technology Building at the Rock Creek Campus mimics the operation of an actual Caterpillar dealership, giving students a real-world training experience.
\n\u201cThis makes a huge difference in our ability to train the students because we have much more space and much more equipment than we had in our old facility,\u201d said Jesse Norconk, Dealer Service Technology instructor, in a PCC video about the new facility. \u201cThis goes a long way in replicating a dealership experience that the students are going to actually work in.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Dealer Service Technology program (ThinkBIG), which began at PCC in 2006, is a partnership between the college and participating Caterpillar dealerships in the Northwest. It combines technical and academic education through paid training to prepare students to become qualified Caterpillar service technicians. Students can earn a two-year Associate Degree in Catepillar Electric Power or Dealer Service Technology.<\/p>\n

PCC is one of only 10 colleges in the United States with a ThinkBIG program and is now just the second ThinkBIG electric power generation technician training school in the country. It\u2019s the only such program in the West. PCC has graduated 182 technicians since the program began.<\/p>\n

Mace Gjerman, a training manager from the Peterson Cat dealership in Hillsboro, said in an interview with PCC in August that this program blends classroom and hands-on experience, and condenses what would take most entry-level employees five to seven years to learn into less than two years of training.<\/p>\n

\u201cThinkBIG is absolutely critical for developing technicians for Caterpillar dealers,\u201d he said in the PCC news post. \u201cWhile you\u2019re learning, you\u2019re earning and immediately putting what you\u2019ve learned into practice to have high-paying, high-benefits, high-opportunity careers at Caterpillar dealers around the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I finish here I want to stay with Peterson for as long as I can,\u201d student Adam Wannamaker said in the PCC video. \u201cI like doing it and I think the instructors are great here.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been working for Peterson Cat for a little bit over a year now and looking forward to being in this brand new facility,\u201d added Ryan Gascho, Dealer Service student.<\/p>\n

\"PCC

PCC Maritime Welding students Keyonna Williams and Alex Cuevas. Photo courtesy of Portland Community College.<\/p><\/div>\n

PCC Welding<\/strong>
\nPCC also has created two new Career Pathway Certificates that train people in maritime welding and maritime ship fitting. The three-class, 12-credit certificates allow students to move into the workforce early if needed and emphasize desired maritime applications like butt and socket welds, fabricating spools, straight runs offsets and more.<\/p>\n

PCC established its Maritime Welding Training Center and, in partnership with Vigor Industrial, in 2008 opened the Swan Island Training Center to help meet the demand for skilled welders. The Maritime Welding Pathway is diversifying its student cohorts, with 27 percent identifying as female or non-binary and the latest welding cohort composed of 50 percent women.<\/p>\n

Student Alex Cuevas said the PCC program is a great way to get into the welding profession and explore the myriad of jobs associated with it.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve always been curious about the trades but I had no clue about how to get into them,\u201d she shared in a news release. \u201cIt seemed like a really good opportunity and is a great field to get into, especially right now. I think Portland needs a lot of revitalization so I decided to jump in.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it\u2019s extremely important for women because I think a lot of us don\u2019t know how to jump into the field,\u201d Cuevas added. \u201cHaving this program makes it super accessible and is user-friendly. You have people working with you at every step of the way to help you in the process. I love this program and am glad it\u2019s here.\u201d<\/p>\n

Next Step – Connect<\/strong>
\nKnife River Training Center, Kris Latimer, kris.latimer@kniferiver.com<\/a>, 541-403-7704.
\nNorthwest Utility Contractors Association, Jenny Dixson, jenny@nwuca.com<\/a>.
\nPortland Community College ThinkBIG, Larisa Felty, program advisor, larisa.felty@pcc.edu<\/a>, 971-722-7603, www.pcc.edu<\/a>.
\nPortland Community College Maritime Welding Training Center, Carrie Weikeldelaplane, carrie.weikeldelaplane@pcc.edu<\/a>, 971-722-5284, www.pcc.edu<\/a>.
\nWolfer\u2019s Training Academy, Maggie Contador, program administrator, 503-991-8416 or 503-220-1901.<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Construction training programs that were forced to go virtual due to the COVID-19 pandemic are celebrating a return to in-person classes and career events, though others have been postponed until next year when conditions hopefully will be a bit more certain.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":873,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18615],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-845","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-headlines"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/djcoregon.com\/skilledmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/845"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/djcoregon.com\/skilledmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/djcoregon.com\/skilledmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/djcoregon.com\/skilledmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/16"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/djcoregon.com\/skilledmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=845"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/djcoregon.com\/skilledmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/845\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/djcoregon.com\/skilledmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/873"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/djcoregon.com\/skilledmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=845"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/djcoregon.com\/skilledmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=845"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/djcoregon.com\/skilledmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=845"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}