Mitchell Community College hosted an Apprenticeship Iredell “Breakfast and Success” event to thank and recognize its industry partners and student-apprentices and to celebrate the continued growth of the program. The breakfast also coincided with the celebration of National Apprenticeship Week.
Apprenticeship Iredell offers student-apprentices the chance to be hired by an industry partner and receive paid on-the-job training while attending Mitchell to earn a selected credential. This community partnership works to develop and strengthen future generations of the workforce in Iredell County.
Participating industry partners enjoyed coffee and breakfast as a token of gratitude while listening to the experiences of four apprentices currently enrolled in the program. Presenting apprentices included:
· Timothy Chavez, Doosan Mechatronics Technician Apprentice
· Shamyah Shears, Piedmont HealthCare Nursing Apprentice
· Kollin Smith, Doosan Mechatronics Technician Apprentice
· Victor Restrepo, Piedmont HealthCare Nursing Apprentice
Hannah Tuthill, Apprenticeship Coordinator, expressed how proud she was of the student-apprentices, and she enthusiastically reported on the participation growth of the Apprenticeship Iredell program; Apprenticeship Iredell has tripled since its beginning in October of 2021, growing from 3 apprentices, 2 industry partners and 1 occupation to what is now 10 apprentices, 9 industry partners, and 13 occupations.
“It is truly inspiring to be a part of this community and see all of us working together for the betterment of Iredell County,” said Tuthill. “With Apprenticeship Iredell, we are producing the next generation of leaders and I couldn’t be more excited to see how these apprentices turn into those leaders.”
Apprenticeship Iredell industry partners recognized at the breakfast included:
· Animal Hospital of Statesville
· Bruning & Federle
· Doosan
· Harbor Point Animal Hospital
· JMS Southeast
· Piedmont HealthCare
· Metro Electric Contracting Corp
· Helping is Simply Caring
· Sonoco Recycling
High School counselors and interested industry partners were in attendance to ask questions and learn more about the program to provide better academic guidance to high school students who might be interested in workforce training. Counselors were also offered a tour of Mitchell’s Workforce Development labs.
