County College of Morris (CCM) was honored on Thursday, May 26, to host a tour and Q&A session on workforce development and successful job readiness programs for U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg and Congresswoman Mikie Sherrill at its state-of-the-art Advanced Manufacturing and Engineering Center (AMEC).
“In recent years, through public and private partnerships and with the strong support of industry we have been able to substantially expand our workforce programs to help area residents secure good paying jobs that sustain families and promote healthy communities,” said Dr. Anthony J. Iacono, CCM president. “Without the support of our county commissioners and state and federal legislators including Congresswoman Mikie Sherrill, we would not be able to support workforce development as extensively as we do. County College of Morris is proud and appreciative of its county, state and federal partners as well as our partners in business and industry; it was an honor to provide Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Representative Mikie Sherrill with insight into the impact of that support.”
During the visit, Buttigieg and Sherrill toured AMEC with college representatives to learn about the wide range of programs provided by CCM’s Center for Workforce Development (WFD) and the diverse populations it serves. Those populations include high school students from the college’s share-time programs with the Morris County Vocational School District, individuals participating in the college’s apprenticeship programs in advanced manufacturing and health care, and those who take advantage of WFD’s wide range of industry recognized certificate programs to get a job, get a better job or get better at the job they’re in. The tour was followed by a question-and-answer information session with Buttigieg and Sherrill, moderated by Iacono, with political officials, industry leaders and students in attendance.
County College of Morris Vice President Patrick Enright (right) takes U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Representative Mikie Sherrill on a tour of the Advanced Manufacturing and Engineering Center at County College of Morris.
According to a press release issued by Sherrill, the visit was part of Buttigieg’s desire to increase awareness on how community colleges, like CCM, can be supported in their efforts to build upon “their already incredible workforce development innovation initiatives.”
As quoted in the Daily Record, Buttigieg stated about his visit to AMEC, “It’s really impressive what we’ve seen here. The key to success is the integration of employers and educators, and seeing how you’ve made that work is impressive.”
Along with receiving strong federal, state and county support, more than 50 manufacturing companies are partners in CCM’s pre-apprenticeship, apprenticeship and other WFD programs, providing guidance on curriculum, donations of the latest industry-leading equipment and scholarships to support students. Included among WFD’s successes are that 93 percent of those who complete the advanced manufacturing pre-apprenticeship program who want a job are placed into a position. In the last three years, more than 4,500 students also have registered for 8,737 workforce development courses.
To view photos from Buttigieg’s and Sherrill’s visit to the college, go to https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjzRGNb/.
To learn more about the programs offered through WFD, visit www.ccm.edu/workforce/.
