In today’s fast-paced and ever-changing economy, highly-skilled jobs are in demand.

Locally,classes in a new Certified Production Technician program at Beaufort County Community College are scheduled to begin Monday, Jan. 27, according to a press release issued by the college on Jan. 3.

The classes are offered at no charge to unemployed and underemployed workers who qualify.

Information sessions about the upcoming classes are scheduled as follows:

         Washington – Tuesday, Jan. 7, 6 to 8 p.m., Auditorium, Building 8, BCCC campus

         Columbia – Wednesday, Jan. 8, 1 to 3 p.m., Tyrrell Hall

         Plymouth – Wednesday, Jan. 8, 5 to 7 p.m., Washington County Center for Human Services

         Lake Landing – Thursday, Jan. 9, 4 to 6 p.m., Mattamuskeet School Cafeteria.

         Aurora – Monday, Jan. 13, 5 to 7 p.m., Snowden Elementary School.

Lou Stout is the Director of Workforce Initiatives for the Division of Continuing Education and Project Coordinator for the NC

Back-to-Work Grant Program at BCCC.

Stout said the program took much much preparation before it could be officially offered by the college.

“The Request for Proposal (RFP) which we received from the NC Community College System Office (NCCCSO) required us to join forces with local employers, our local NC Works Center (formerly known as the JobLink Career Center), and our local Workforce Development Board, along with several other agencies.  Several meetings were held,and the group decided that the CPT was the best program for our area,” she said.

Stout said the program will allow students to gain “valuable, stackable” credentials that are not only recognized in North Carolina, but across the nation.

“Our goal is for the students to gain a ‘needed’ skill set that will help them either gain employment or find better employment.  The target population we are seeking are those unemployed or those underemployed,” she said.

By IRS standards this means that the people in question work and earn wages at or below 200 percent of the Federal Poverty level.

The Manufacturing Skills Standard Council (MSSC) requires students to go through the curriculum and then take a certification exam.  If the students pass the exam, MSSC will issue them a “certification” in that core

curriculum area.  If the students successfully complete all four modules, the fifth “stackable” credential they achieve is the Certified Production Technician (CPT).  The four modules are:  Safety, Quality Practices and Measurement, Manufacturing Processes and  Production, and Maintenance Awareness.

In addition to the five credentials mentioned above, students will also have a chance to earn their Career Readiness Certification (CRC).  The CRC is a nationally recognized portable credential that measures a person’s employability skills in three areas: Reading for Information,Locating Information, and Applied Mathematics. Students have the ability to complete this program and earn six nationally and locally recognized credentials.

After completing the program, students could be hired as assemblers, machine operators, production technicians, and or process technicians, depending on the individual company and its needs.

“This program is a great compliment to the other programs offered with the Division of Continuing Education.  We have never offered the CPT program  before.  The NC Back-to-Work Grant has afforded us the opportunity to bring this training to our area” said Stout.

BCCC does not ‘certify’ any programs.

We coordinate with third-party companies and organizations, such as MSSC to offer certification courses. As with the CPT, BCCC is not the ‘certifying’ agency, MSSC will certify the students, based on their individual exam scores,” said Stout.

Stout said that BCCC tries to select programs that give students an opportunity at a skill set that is in demand by local employers.  BCCC also tries to work with our partnering agencies and local employers when deciding what new programs to offer.”

Stout said she has been with BCCC for 18 years.

“In that time frame, our programs have grown tremendously over the years.  Over the last few years, we have enhanced several programs both in the Division of Continuing Education and in the curriculum area,” said Stout.