The Grove | Valencia College

First Advanced Manufacturing National Certification Cohort Begins Grant-Funded Program

Oct

28

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A message from Falecia Williams, West Campus President

Valencia kicked off its first Advanced Manufacturing National Certification course on Monday, October 7, 2013.  The Certified Production Technician curriculum is a five-week program designed to deliver practical education to students on the four key components of how a manufacturing organization operates, quality, safety, production and maintenance.

Through Valencia’s partnership with Workforce Central Florida, 14 students were awarded Individual Training Accounts through a grant-funded program and entered the first cohort. The objective over the next four to six months of training is to provide internships for students and jobs upon completion with local manufacturers, and this diverse group of students, including two veterans, is optimistic about the program providing career opportunities.

Valencia’s Continuing Education Department was one of the recipients of the Department of Labor’s Advanced Manufacturing Grant awarded the end of last year. The grant’s objective is twofold; to fill the skills training gap in state and national manufacturing jobs and to put unemployed workers back to work.

Currently, there are more than 4,000 unfilled manufacturing jobs in Florida today and our goal is to fill at least 200 of those jobs in Central Florida.

Related Tags: advanced manufacturing, continuing education, grants