JobsNow Program at Randolph Community College Under Way

When North Carolina's JobsNOW: "12 in 6" initiative was developed, it was conceived with people like Dale Spainhour of Asheboro in mind. Spainhour had worked in the furniture industry for nearly 30 years before being laid off due to the downturn in the industry and the economy. "I looked for employment and couldn't find anything," said Spainhour. He saw a story about JobsNOW in the newspaper and came to Randolph Community College to investigate. Spainhour, who is married with one daughter who is enrolled in Randolph Early College High School, is now a student in the Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning/Industrial Maintenance program at RCC through JobsNOW.

"We started the first HVAC class Jan. 5 with 10 students (12 is the maximum number per class)," said Elizabeth Kremer, coordinator of the program at RCC. The students are currently in the industrial maintenance part of the training, which encompasses 100 hours of class time. On a recent day in the classroom, instructor Mike Whitt was teaching the students how electrical circuits work, how to wire up electrical switches, and introducing them to motor control circuits. After that, the students will move on to 60 hours of heating and air conditioning training, then finish up with a Human Resources Development class that will include resume writing, how to fill out applications, how to dress, and how to interview, said Kremer.

For more of this story, go to http://www.randolph.edu/newevents/2010/2010-02-16a.php .