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In Training: Some study for new careers
Journal Photo by David Rolfe
Denise Strube, a student in the JobsNOW program at Forsyth Tech, practices on fellow student Alicia Rodgers.
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Published: October 24, 2009
When Denise Strube moved to Kernersville from Michigan last year, she worked as a photo-lab supervisor for CVS Pharmacy.
Now, she is changing careers, leaving retail behind for the health-care field.
"It was a big change," Strube said.
She decided to get into nursing after taking care of her brother, Phillip Frank, who was dying.
Shortly after Frank died in 2008, Strube and her husband moved here.
That move made it the right time for a change in career.
Strube is one of 824 students who have enrolled in the JobsNOW "12 in 6" program at Forsyth Technical Community College.
The program is a collaboration between the N.C. Community College System and the N.C. Department of Commerce. It was set up to help North Carolinians who have lost their jobs because of layoffs and plant closings, but it's open to anyone looking for a job.
Students in the program can earn certifications and training in less than six months, but some students continue their education in order to earn a degree.
The program is part of Gov. Bev Perdue's larger JobsNOW initiative, which focuses on job creation and economic development.
"The goal is to provide training in occupational-skill areas that are high-demand areas," said Sue Marion, the vice president of corporate and continuing education at Forsyth Tech. "It would enable individuals to receive the skills they need to become employed and they could get this training and the skills in six months or less."
The program received $13.4 million in federal recovery money, of which $250,000 went to Forsyth Tech.
Marion said that the college is using its part of the money for instructional salaries.
Although 12 career areas were identified for the program, each community college in the state can work with their work-force development boards to identify the high-demand occupational areas in their communities, Marion said.
Forsyth Technical Community College offers 17 different programs, ranging from administrative-assistant certification to plumbing helper. Because of the number of jobs in the health-care industry here, that is the focus of many of the programs. Students can study to become nursing assistants, phlebotomists or train in medical billing.
"The good thing about this is that each JobsNOW program has a component in it where we are focusing on the jobs-skill aspect such as job search, resume writing, team-building and those skills that are really needed for whatever occupation you desire," Marion said.
She said that students in the program will also have the chance to earn career-readiness certification.
The classes started in August. Some ended in September and others will end later this year.
Marion said that as soon as a program finishes and there is enough interest, Forsyth Tech will start more.
When the current financing runs out, Forsyth Tech plans to continue the program using money from its regular occupational skills or continuing-education programs.
Strube, who is in the nursing-assistant certification program, isn't worried about finding a job in this economy. She already has a job lead.
"I think that CNAs are in high demand right now," she said.
Debbie Leonard of Winston-Salem is in the same program as Strube.
Leonard is changing careers after 30 years in the information-technology field.
"The whole program has been life-changing," she said. "The instructors have been dynamite."
Leonard's class will end Monday.
She plans to start looking for a job as soon as she passes her certification test.
"I think maybe I've found my calling," she said.
"I like working with people."
fdaniel@wsjournal.com | 727-7366
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