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NANTICOKE – Three new programs being offered this year at Luzerne County Community College have been crafted to prepare students for high-demand technical positions identified by local employers.
The diesel truck technology, engineering design and manufacturing, and welding programs will expand on current offerings at the college and offer certificate, diploma or associate’s degrees. The enhancements are funded, in part, by a four-year, $1.8 million federal Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College and Career Training Grant.
“This grant supports immediate needs and those in the near future,” said Susan Spry, LCCC vice president of workforce development. “We have some of these programs in certain stages, but they will be enhanced to meet employers’ needs.”
The 30-credit diesel technology program will offer a certificate, and students in the college’s auto technology associate’s degree program are expected to participate as well, since there is strong demand for diesel technicians.
There also is a need for welders, driven in part by Marcellus Shale natural gas drilling and related activities, said Dana Clark, provost and vice president of academic affairs.
The new engineering design and manufacturing associate’s track is a compilation of several existing programs we have, Spry said. They will be combined at the request of employer advisers who asked for training that would allow one person to do design and fabrication.
Craig Barroll, systems manager at K-Fab Inc., Berwick, offered his input to the college as the programs were being developed. He said broad skills are needed to compete with foreign companies that have diversified staffs and low labor costs.
“(The LCCC) program would be well-suited as training for what we do,” Barroll said. “You need to cross train people on different areas of specialization.”
K-Fab, a manufacturer of metal products with about 300 employees, has hired LCCC graduates in the past. While all new hires need on-the-job training, a graduate of the program will “know the basics, how to read measuring instruments and drawings, how to use computers. It really puts them a step above other applicants,” Barroll said.
In addition to current job openings, all three industries “are going to be hit hard by a retirement bubble,” Spry said.
“These are very lucrative skills,” Clark said, with good entry pay levels.
Helene Mancuso Flannery, program manager for the grant, provided data showing starting salaries near or above $30,000 in the local area.
Mike Oliveri, a technician at Waste Management and an instructor in LCCC’s diesel technology program, said training is needed to keep up with increasingly sophisticated electronic equipment.
“You need to be able to diagnose, read schematics, use a computer,” Oliveri said. “The better you understand how it works, the better you’re going to diagnose it properly.”
With minimal experience, you’re probably going to start at $13 or $14 an hour, he said.
Spry said the grant will help the college to acquire needed equipment, renovate space and prepare materials for the new courses.
“We’re able to purchase 13 welding booths and supporting equipment” for the welding program, she gave as an example.
Clark said the expansion will make room for up to 25 new students in each of the three programs, and move some non-credit offerings into credit tracks.
Mancuso Flannery said the college also will offer one-on-one counseling and placement services.
