Strategic Business Plan 2017 - 2020 Strategic Business Plan 2017 - 2020 | Page 21

aware of workforce services and take advantage of the free employment services while finishing their
education.
Process Technology Certification Program- WFSCB recently partnered with Del Mar College to provide
an accelerated Process Technology Training Program to workforce program participants. The manufacturing
industry currently employs an estimated 10,886 workers in the Coastal Bend Region with Petroleum and
Chemical Manufacturing employing 40% of those workers. In the spring of 2016, Del Mar College (DMC)
launched a training program at their new Pilot Plant for Processing Technology to give students a hands-on,
real-world experience in refinery safety, plant operations, maintenance and equipment used in local
refineries. The accelerated, 18-week Process Technology Training Program is an alternative to the existing
two-year Associates Degree. The condensed curriculum allows for certifications in this industry to be
obtained within the required time frame and provides a skilled applicant pool to local employers. Funding
provided by the Job-Driven National Emergency Grant and Sector Partnership National Dislocated Worker
grant provided opportunities for thirty-five local program participants to receive this certification.
Employer Roundtable Discussions were held in the fall of 2016 and early 2017 with construction employer
representatives from the Associated General Contractors (AGC) and with a group of local employers who
hire Mechanical Engineering Technicians. Construction employers were made aware of a training grant
funded by the Texas Workforce Commission specific for construction trades. Directly from this event, a
partnership was developed between the AGC, Del Mar College, and WFSCB to submit a proposal for specific
hands-on construction trades training in the area.
In January 2017, a second roundtable discussion occurred with employer s of Mechanical Engineering
Technicians (MET). Texas A&M University- Corpus Christi partnered with WFSCB to survey employers on
the skill sets needed for METs in an attempt to create an online, competency based MET program.
Regional Education and Training Data
Partnerships with local Adult Education & Literacy organizations like the Corpus Christi and San Patricio
County Literacy Council help to increase adult GED and high school diploma completion. While post-
secondary partnerships like the Coastal Compass Education & Career Resource Center help to increase
post-secondary certification/degree completion in the region.
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