Apprenticeships at YCCC

Yesterday I shared some information about one apprenticeship program at Vermont Technical College, and today I’m sharing a bit about an apprenticeship program at York County Community College in Wells, Maine. I like to share multiple examples of apprenticeships to show not only that apprenticeships are alive and well in New England, but also for the purpose of making comparisons between them. That’s to say that those of us who are interested in the health and well-being of New England might develop the ability to not just be aware of the apprenticeship programs, but to be able to do comparisons of them, and to see what models might work elsewhere.

YCCC Supports the Shipyard I first became aware of the Kittery Shipyard Apprenticeship Program when I read an article in Seacoast Online about the difficulty the shipyard was having in finding new workers. I was surprised, because I thought that lots of people would jump at the prospect to make good wages in a good, physical job. Well, it seems that partnering with a community college can work well for employers, as the school can provide screening of applicants and assist with preparation of future workers.

As it happens, I was driving in Wells, Maine on a rainy March day, and drove past York County Community College.”It doesn’t look like much is going on there”, I thought to myself. But oh boy was I wrong, as I discovered from studying their website and sitting down with YCCC President Barbara Finkelstein. The place is humming with apprenticeships, industry partnerships and happy people.

Here is that link again: Kittery Shipyard Apprenticeship Program

Critical Infrastructure for Children features about twelve different models of apprenticeships within New England, among many other models of job creation. If you are interested in a presentation of that book, please contact me via LinkedIn.