Continuing Education offering new FREE six-week Building Construction Trades Program for Youth starting Sept. 13
Program designed for those ages 16 to 24 who are neither in school nor working; Participants can earn Occupational Skills Award, along with industrial-based credentials
Article by Melinda Eddleman
The Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) defines them as “Opportunity Youth,” 16- to 24-year-olds who are neither attending school nor working. A two-year $300,000 TWC Building and Construction Trades grant awarded to Del Mar College (DMC) can change the future for many of these young Coastal Bend adults who fit into that definition and who are interested in this industrial type of training and work.
DMC Continuing Education (CE) is offering a new six-week Building Construction Trades for Youth Program on the College’s Windward Campus (Old Brownsville and Airport Roads), starting Monday, Sept. 13. The best part of this opportunity … it’s FREE to those who qualify for the program.
The type of training we’re offering is directly aligned with the 2019- 2021 Workforce Solutions of the Coastal Bend’s Targeted Occupations List. Students will learn basic framing and carpentry skills during the program’s two courses, which are also cross-listed so they can be matriculated or stacked into our Level I Certificate and associate’s degrees in carpentry and construction programs.
As a two-course offering, the Building Construction Trades Program for Youth will meet Mondays through Thursdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Students will receive an overview and training of commonly recognized construction skills, develop safe work habits and learn to properly identify and maintain tools and equipment used in the carpentry industry. The program will provide students basic tools and personal protection gear, and participants will build a multi-purpose building to demonstrate the skills they’re learning during this program.
By completing the program, participants will first earn an Occupational Skills Award (OSA) in carpentry, along with an industrial-based credential. That means they can directly enter the workforce with CE representatives connecting them with employers for consideration or immediate employment, or they can continue their training.
“Students can use the OSA as the first step toward their academic journey as they continue to be eligible for enrollment in additional training opportunities that enhance and build on their skills,” notes Benavides.
Criteria for the program include:
- Participant is age 16 to 24,
- Participant is neither in school nor working,
- Participant is a U.S. citizen or certified to work in the United States, and
- Participant has court-appointed paperwork, if applicable, with school withdrawal forms.
The College will schedule seven more cohorts over the next 18 months.
For more information about the program, meeting criteria and signing-up, contact Career Consultant Naomi Freeze with DMC Continuing Education at 361-790-3189.
Interested individuals can also stop by the Continuing Education Office (Suite 115) at the Del Mar College Center for Economic Development at 3209 S. Staples.
Del Mar College empowers students to achieve their dreams. We offer quality programs, individual attention, outstanding instruction through faculty with real-world experience and affordable costs to credit and noncredit students in Corpus Christi and the South Texas Coastal Bend area. Nationally recognized while locally focused, we’re ranked in the top two percent of community colleges in the country granting associate degrees to Hispanic students (Community College Week). Del Mar College focuses on offering our students programs that match current or emerging career opportunities. Whether students are interested in the fine arts, sciences, business, occupational or technical areas, students get the education they need for the future they want at Del Mar College.