Fourteen graduates from LaGuardia Community College’s carpentry program received certifications from the New York State Builders Association (NYSBA) – putting them on a path to a residential construction job.
“With the skills our graduates acquire, they are able to seek entry-level carpentry positions with local residential builders,” said Lourdes Nasongkhla, the program coordinator.
The program, which began in 2008, has seen some positive results in spite of the difficult economic times – particularly for the construction industry. Prior to this year’s class 34 students have completed the program and 22 have landed jobs.
Nasongkhla attributes its success to the program’s partnership with 18 local residential builders that make up the program’s advisory board.
“All our partners are working on long-term construction projects,” she said. “And they have come to rely on the program for highly trained construction workers.”
Students enroll in a comprehensive 100-hour program and focus on topics recommended by the nationally recognized curriculum from the National Association of Home Builders, Home Builders Institute and the New York State Builders Association Research and Education Foundation. During a span of 16 weeks, the students covered basic construction math, tools, safety blueprint reading, building layout and concrete form construction. Along with the NYSBA certificate, the graduates also received a 10-hour OSHA certificate.
Already, one of the partners, Mega Contracting, Inc., in Astoria, has interviewed a current graduate for an apprenticeship that will lead to a long-term, full-time position. Nasongkhla said that LaGuardia launched its construction program, which also offers a plumbing course, upon the request of NYSBA.
“The builders were discovering that the people applying for construction jobs did not have the necessary skills required for the job,” she said, “and asked that we partner with them to develop a program that would provide participants with the appropriate training.
