Eleven more students taking their 'second chance' - Times Mail

BEDFORD (Krystal Shetler, Times Mail)— For the past two years, Jessica Terrell has been in prison. She’s out now, but she knows opportunities for felons are few and far between. Second chances must be seized.

Terrell is among the 11 students chosen for the second cohort of the Lawrence County Workforce Coalition’s Introduction to Local Jobs and Skills course taking place now at the North Lawrence Career Center.
“I want to get back out in the workforce,” Terrell said. “It’s hard to get a job coming out of prison, so I think this is a true blessing, and I feel like we’re very lucky that we get to widen our opportunities. It’s really a blessing for people like us.”
 
The three-week training course is designed for adult students to gain exposure to and develop entry-level skills for careers in the region. Classes are being conducted at the career center with three program areas: welding, construction trades and machining, taught by certified NLCC instructors David McCart, Matt Olson and Brad Gilbert, respectively.

Partnerships with local justice-involved entities have provided a pool of students seeking to “skill up” and explore potential careers. The workforce coalition collaborates with the prosecutor’s office, public defender’s agency and the probation department in getting students enrolled who are seeking a way to change their trajectory in life.

“It’s a whole lot easier when you have a good job and make good money to stay out of trouble because they have a lot more to lose,” said Bob Cline, Lawrence County’s chief deputy prosecutor. “What we are seeing is that most of the people in the justice system are not bad people, they’re just addicted. If we can get them in treatment, then work with them to skill up and get good jobs, then we’re helping our community. These people are a part of our society, and we want to help them, so we’re utilizing a resource in our community and using it to make our community better. We want to change lives ... we want to make them better. ... I see good things happening because the whole system is working together to accomplish this goal.”

It’s been a long time since Hali Reynolds has been completely sober. She completed the Transitions-Recovery program, and now, she’s working on making herself better. She marked Thursday as her 70th day of sobriety.

 “I am super grateful for this opportunity,” Reynolds said. “It really does a lot for your self-confidence, in addition to building skills that are useful in the workforce. I am getting all of that through this class. ... What we’re doing here is amazing. I’m the type of person that, if I’m working on something, I want to put my all into it, so I’m giving this everything because I need the opportunity this is giving me.”

Before taking the class, Michael Gillespie had never touched a welder. As he held the welding torch and sparks flew from the metal, his classmates watched in awe of his natural talent as he put the beads precisely where they needed to go.

“I have a 98 in this class! Turns out I’m a natural,” Gillespie said, smiling from ear to ear. “It’s really fun, and I hope it’s a way for me to stay around locally in the community. I’ve felt like it’s a good opportunity to learn something new about yourself. ... The people who put this on Joe (Timbrook), Heather (Nash) and the instructors are really dedicated. You can tell they truly want to see another alternative for people. I’m fortunate, very lucky, to be here.”

In addition to learning concepts and overviews of skills to obtain and/or advance in one of these career areas, students also explore employability competencies such as communication, workplace etiquette and social awareness. Many of the students who participated in the first cohort in July obtained new or better jobs before they even graduated from the program.

“Our local employers and organizations have been outstanding at working with us to create best-case scenario next steps for these participants,” said Timbrook, who serves as the director of career development for the Lawrence County Economic Growth Council, which oversees the workforce coalition. “We are filling gaps that otherwise wouldn’t be filled and giving opportunities to these individuals.”

This second class runs through Sept. 4. At the end of the course, students will have earned a certificate of completion to show prospective employers and add to their resume, which they will have the opportunity to craft as part of course curriculum. Currently, the ideal student is a Lawrence County resident not yet earning a living-wage. If you are interested in participating in the program, or an employer interested getting involved, contact Nash, director of programming for the LCEGC, at 812-275-4493 or heather@lawrencec ountygrowth.com.