In December 2008, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation provided a grant to Workforce Strategy Center (WSC), located in New York City, to study best practices in engaging employers in workforce development initiatives. Montgomery College was one of the community colleges contacted by WSC to be interviewed about best practices. The College pointed to its partnership with the Washington Area New Dealers Association (WANADA) as a model program successfully targeting low-income young adults through the Technician Training Program.Coordinated by WANADA, this two-year program serves at-risk young adults, mostly ages 18-22, and provides automotive technician training at Montgomery College, mentorship with auto technicians, and full-time entry-level jobs with area auto dealers. The Technician Training Program has placed more than 200 production technicians with employers since the program's inception in 2000. The program has an 80 percent college retention rate and a 90 percent dealership retention rate. The model has been expanded to Northern Virginia Community College and there are plans to expand to include Community College of Baltimore County.
To download the report, please go to: http://www.workforcestrategy.org/publications/WSC_employer_involvement_2009.10.20.pdf. The partnership between Montgomery College and WANADA are featured on pages 65 to 67.
Special thanks to Ed Roberts, instructional dean of the Gudelsky Institute for Technical Education, Debra Anderson, program director of the Automotive Technology Program, and Michael Carretta, automotive technology instructor, for providing information to the Workforce Strategy Center for this report.
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