As part of a collaborative effort aimed at providing relief to the region affected by Hurricane Helene, the Good Jobs WNC Initiative has awarded Southwestern Community College $271,575 to help address workforce needs in manufacturing, skilled labor and the healthcare sectors.
After assessing some of the strongest needs of the labor market in Southwestern’s service area, SCC officials are focusing on two areas for expansion: Licensed Practical Nursing (LPN) and Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC). Plans for adding an evening LPN program and a daytime HVAC program are already underway at Southwestern.
“This funding allows us to create a sustainable educational model and create a pipeline of talent for area employers while also preparing students for good jobs,” said Dr. Don Tomas, SCC’s President. “This is exactly what community colleges have been doing successfully for a very long time, and our region is going to benefit tremendously from this investment.”
The Good Jobs WNC Initiative is a cooperative effort among the 11 westernmost community colleges in North Carolina, local employers, the John W. Belk Endowment, The Leon Levine Foundation, America Achieves, Dogwood Health Trust, State Employees Credit Union and other philanthropic agencies.
Its goal is to place 1,200 students into high-demand job opportunities within the region. SCC’s initiative defines a “good job” as one that provides a living-wage income (starting wage of at least $42,000 annually), benefits and an opportunity for advancement.
With the additional LPN educational track, SCC can double the number of yearly LPN graduates and improve the workforce pipeline of nurses. Recent research reveals that 83 percent of SCC graduates stay, live and work in the college’s service area of Jackson, Macon, Swain Counties and the Qualla Boundary.
For the HVAC program expansion, a shortened (14-week) certificate program teaches essential foundational competencies, providing a rapid pipeline for matriculating skilled workers in the local economy. Four days of classroom instruction will be paired with one day of hands-on training in the field.
The Good Jobs Framework, developed by America Achieves, guides the initiative’s work across 11 community colleges and 23 counties to expand education, training and employment access for low-income residents of Western North Carolina. The goal is twofold: prepare and place more residents into good jobs in Western North Carolina, and translate that experience and lessons learned to build evidence, tools, and recommendations to improve education and workforce policy at large scale at the state and national levels.
“This work began with listening to the people who know Western North Carolina best: its community college leaders, employers, and residents,” said MC Belk Pilon, President and Board Chair of the John M. Belk Endowment. “Their leadership has brought us to this point. We are thrilled that national philanthropy will build on local communities to help make sure that this region not only delivers strong local programs but develops lessons learned and tools to take lasting pathways to economic mobility to a much larger scale.”
For more information about Southwestern and the programs it offers, visit www.SouthwesternCC.edu, call 828.339.4000 or drop by your nearest SCC location.
