Apprenticeship programs have increasingly played a role in growing the region’s workforce.

Apprenticeship programs have increasingly played a role in growing the region’s workforce. Gestamp, an international manufacturer of automotive parts, worked with Hamilton County Schools to develop a high school apprenticeship program.

Students spend two years taking online classes in the Gestamp learning lab while receiving hands-on training. The students are paid, and after completing the program, are prepared for college or to begin their careers. The program was the first in Tennessee to earn the U.S. Department of Labor’s Registered Apprenticeship designation.

Bo Drake, vice president, of economic and workforce development at Chattanooga State Community College, says apprenticeships offer another tool to help connect students to in-demand jobs and better prepare them with the skills businesses need.

“We have an incredible career services department that works with students to ensure their resumes impress prospective employers. This same department works with businesses to post the latest and greatest local jobs,” he says.

“Our faculty and adjunct faculty are also connected to business partners and often learn about job openings before anyone else. Perhaps our most exciting new initiative is connecting businesses and students from the beginning of a student’s educational career through apprenticeships.”

Written By Teree Caruthers

Published on Livability.com