Apprenticeship opportunities have created quite the buzz nationally during recent months. Apprenticeships are neither a new concept nor one that has traditionally aligned well with higher education. While many individuals may only consider apprenticeship opportunities in traditional trades like electrical, HVAC, and plumbing, there are over 1,000 apprentice-able occupations, and this platform has been in existence since 1937.
College of Western Idaho (CWI) is working to change how and where apprenticeships are made available by expanding resources to connect students to better jobs and additional training, upon completion of a degree or certificate program. In November of 2016, the Idaho Department of Labor secured a $1.4 million grant from the federal government to expand the apprenticeship infrastructure across Idaho. As part of that grant, CWI now has a part-time Apprenticeship Coordinator who works with businesses to identify their training, recruitment, and retention pain points and customize registered apprenticeship opportunities as solutions. This new business-facing position allows connection with many new industry spaces and will continue to create opportunities for the College to be more responsive to the needs of businesses within the community.
To learn more about the apprenticeship resources available at CWI, please contact Andrew Mentzer at andrewmentzer@cwi.edu.
