Valdosta, GA— Wiregrass Tech celebrated the 8th annual National Apprenticeship Week (November 14-20, 2022) by highlighting the value of Registered Apprenticeships for growing South Georgia’s skilled workforce.
The Technical College System of Georgia (TCSG) and its 22 technical colleges serve as Registered Apprenticeship sponsors making it the largest Registered Apprenticeship network in the state. In recent years, Wiregrass has sponsored more than 90 apprentices for 30 local employers. Currently, Wiregrass has 33 active apprentices working for 13 local employers.
“At MANA here in Fitzgerald, we recognize that the workforce for the manufacturing sector is changing rapidly. For us to remain competitive in our market, we must embrace these changes or we will fall behind,” shared Harry Broughton, MANA Nutrition Director of Operations. “Specifically, there are fewer and fewer low and medium-skilled jobs. Automation is changing our industry. Therefore, we must attract a labor force to support increasing layers of automation. This is when we reached out to Wiregrass to learn what we could do to attack the issue. We shared the issue with the staff at Wiregrass and began to learn about their Apprenticeship Program. I am proud to say Wiregrass did a great job identifying two candidates who are now valuable members of our team. We intend to expand the program as we grow.”
“Apprenticeships represent another way we can meet the workforce needs of our local employers and Wiregrass is thrilled to offer our students and local business and industry this opportunity,” shared Wiregrass President DeAnnia Clements. “We currently have 22 apprenticeship completers who received a nationally-recognized certificate of completion from the U.S. Department of Labor. This is workforce development at its best.”
Currently, according to the U.S. Department of Labor, there are more than 9,000 active apprentices throughout the state of Georgia, which continues Georgia’s rise in apprenticeship activity. This figure is expected to grow with the additional apprenticeship funding available to Georgia employers and apprentices, such as the federal Apprenticeship State Expansion (ASE) Grant and Georgia’s first-ever state-funded apprenticeship initiative, the High Demand Career Initiatives (HDCI) Program, signed into law in 2022 by Governor Brian P. Kemp.
To get involved or learn more about Wiregrass Tech’s Apprenticeship Program, contact Wiregrass Executive Director of Departmental Affairs, Nicole West, at 229-333-2100 ext. 4837 or by email at Nicole.west@wiregrass.edu. The college is currently accepting new students for Spring Semester; classes begin on January 9, 2023. Visit Wiregrass.edu to learn more.
