Career Fair set for April 8

 

Beaufort County Community College students, graduates and job-seekers will have the chance to talk with area employers at the annual BCCC Career Fair  from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. April 8 in the Multi-purpose Room of Building 10 on the BCCC campus.

The event is not only designed to bring business and industry leaders under one roof with job-seekers but to provide career-related advice to those job-seekers.

It is sponsored by the BCCC Career Center and NC Works Career Center with the assistance of Washington Young Professionals.

This year’s Career Fair will have a new look that will give participants the chance to spend more time with potential employers in a relaxed environment, according to Sandria McFadden, Career Center director.

There will also be an area where attendees can get help preparing resumes, complete job applications and learn about programs available at BCCC that can help participants train for careers.

“After studying similar events in other regions of the state, we decided to re-invent the Career Fair to make it more meaningful to job-seekers and employers,” McFadden said.

In 2013, some 300 job-seekers attended and made contact with some 25 employers.

Career Fair is part of BCCC’s celebration of the N.C. Advanced Manufacturing Week. Other events include industry tours and tours of the campus by local school students and Free Day at BCCC — when prospective college students can attend a day of classes free of charge.

Attendance at the Career Fair is free and open to BCCC graduates, students and job-seekers in BCCC’s four-county service area of Beaufort, Hyde, Washington and Tyrrell counties and others in eastern North Carolina.

Among the employers and agencies expected to participate in the fair are The Art Institutes, Care-o-World, Flanders Filters Inc., Maxim Healthcare Services, N.C. BioNetwork, N.C. Department of Correction and N.C. Wesleyan College, Spinrite Yarns, Suddenlink and Vidant Medical Center.

Visit the Career Center webpage at www.beaufortccc.edu/stdserve/career/career.htmfor an up-to-date list and a link to participating employers.

For more information about the upcoming Career Fair, interested persons can contact McFadden at 940-6353 or by email at SandyMcF@beaufortccc.edu.

 

Manufacturing open house set for April

 

The latest in equipment and training for careers in advanced manufacturing will be displayed to the public at Beaufort County Community College on April 8, as part of Advanced Manufacturing Awareness Week.

The open house is scheduled for 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. in Building 4 on the BCCC campus. It is free of charge to the public.

Following the open house, attendees will have the chance to tour PAS, USA Inc., a local industry, to see advanced manufacturing techniques at work on the factory floor.

The event will give participants the chance to learn about programs offering technical certificates, diplomas and degrees, as well as educational pathways linking high schools, community colleges and universities with the world of work, according to BCCC President Barbara Tansey.

“With shifts in the labor market and a greater emphasis on technical degrees, BCCC is collaborating with local manufacturers across the region to present this event,” Tansey said. “I hope that prospective students, economic development leaders and others interested in the new world of manufacturing will take the opportunity to learn how BCCC can prepare our area residents for some of the emerging careers in manufacturing.”

Other events during the week include tours by area middle and high school students of BCCC Industrial Technology programs, a career fair, Free Day at BCCC and tours by BCCC students of local industries.

BCCC programs have been updated to prepare students for these emerging careers thanks to a Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College and Career Training Grant from the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration. The grant was awarded to 10 community colleges that formed the North Carolina Advanced Manufacturing Alliance.

As a member of that alliance, BCCC was awarded $2.2 million over a three-year period that includes funding for equipment to upgrade its electrical, machining and welding programs, among others, to meet industry needs.

According to N.C. Employment Security Commission job projection data developed in 2006, manufacturing jobs in chemical, computer and electronics, food, metal and transportation equipment products are forecast to make gains annually through 2016.

For more information about the open house, interested persons may visit the BCCC website at www.beaufortccc.edu or contact Darwin Richards, project coordinator for the N.C. Advanced Manufacturing Alliance, at 252-940-6239 or darwinr@beaufortccc.edu or Sara Singleton, grant writer and special projects coordinator, at 252-940-6271 or saras@beaufortccc.edu.

 

Workshop offers tips on starting a business

 

BCCC’s Business and Industry Services will offer a workshop, “How to Start a Business,” 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. April 7 in Room 828 of Building 8 on the BCCC campus.

SCORE volunteers will give participants information on the advantages and disadvantages of starting a new business, information on obtaining permits and licenses and information about tax requirements, among other topics.

The workshop is part of the Small Business Center core curriculum for prospective and current business owners. It is offered free of charge, but preregistration is encouraged to ensure the adequate preparation of materials.

The Washington-Beaufort County Chamber of Commerce and SCORE, a national, nonprofit organization whose 10,500 volunteers provide free small business counseling and training, are co-sponsors.

To register for the workshop, contact BCCC’s Business and Industry Services at 940-6375 or email Eva Peartree at evap@beaufortccc.edu or Lentz Stowe, director of BCCC’s Business and Industry Services at 252-940-6306 or by email at lentzs@beaufortccc.edu.

For more information about other services offered by BCCC’s Business and Industry Services’ Small Business Center, including targeted seminars for business owners, visit BCCC’s Website at www.beaufortccc.edu/coned/Small Business/workshops.htm or contact Stowe or Lauren Spruill, customized training coordinator, at 252-940-6311 or by email at laurens@beaufortccc.edu.

 

Nurse aide II graduates recognized in ceremony

 

The nurse-aide program at Beaufort County Community College recently held a recognition event and open house in honor of six students completing their nurse aide II studies in Washington.

During the recognition ceremony, each graduate was presented a certificate in honor of his or her completion of the program. Family and friends filled the nurse-aide classroom in Building 12 on the BCCC campus for the ceremony along with by BCCC Trustee Mitchell St. Clair Sr., Vice President of Research and Institutional Effectiveness Jay Sullivan and Vice President of Continuing Education Chet Jarman. A reception followed the ceremony.

After being recognized with certificates of completion, the students presented a certificate of appreciation to instructor Ann Davenport and briefly described what she had meant to them during the course.

Students completing the program were Takia Fulford and Joseph Whitney Jr. of Greenville, Paula Tackett of New Bern and Allison Daniels, Amanda Grooms and Sierra Weatherington of Washington.

During their studies, the students completed classroom work at BCCC and clinical training at River Trace Nursing and Rehabilitation Center of Washington.

The next nurse aide II classes will begin in March and April.

For more information about BCCC’s nurse aide program, interested persons should contact Sue Gurley, Nurse Aide Program coordinator, at 252-940-6263 or by email at sueg@beaufortccc.edu.