JHA Employment, Training Program Celebrates new Graduates

The Johnstown Housing Authority’s Employment and Training Program commemorated eight graduates of the program’s 2nd friend who went into a new stage of life Friday.

The ceremony at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College in Richland Township marked a clean slate for https://sowjobs.com/ the graduates, who are set to seek additional education or employment in the Johnstown area, said JHA Executive Director Mike Alberts.

For the past four months, those enrolled in the program completed courses provided by a collaboration among Penn Highlands, Johnstown Area Regional Industries and https://horizonsmaroc.com/ PA CareerLink.

The program included courses supplied at Johnstown public real estate neighborhood spaces to remove participants’ transportation barriers.

The of dispute management, task search and interview abilities, Microsoft Word and Excel, and life skills management, along with school outing for a robotics bootcamp and tours of technology-based production companies including Kitron and Compass Systems.

The event Friday celebrated the 8 graduates of the program while acknowledging dozens more who enrolled, but pulled out after discovering employment or other additional education opportunities along the way.

PHOTO GALLERY|Johnstown Housing Authority Employment & Training Program Graduation

Bernice Sanders (best), of the Coopersdale area of Johnstown, commemorates after getting her Certificate of Completion during the Johnstown Housing Authority Employment & Training Program graduation event at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College in Richland Township on Friday, January 31, xpressrh.com 2025.

Jeanne Vandergrift (front), of the Dale section of Johnstown, celebrates with graduates after getting her Certificate of Completion during the Johnstown Housing Authority Employment & Training Program graduation event at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College in Richland Township on Friday, January 31, 2025.

RJ Montague (right), of Johnstown, shakes hands with Johnstown Housing Authority (JHA) Executive Director Mike Alberts (center) while receiving their Certificate of Completion during the JHA Employment & Training Program graduation event at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College in Richland Township on Friday, January 31, 2025. Looking on, from left to right, is Pennsylvania Highlands Community College President Steve Nunez and JARI President and CEO Linda Thomson.

Marie Bradford, of the Oakhurst section of Johnstown, celebrates during the Johnstown Housing Authority Employment & Training Program graduation ceremony at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College in Richland Township on Friday, January 31, [Redirect-302] 2025.

Dellia Gonzalez, of the Oakhurst section of Johnstown, with her child Dakota Marong, 3, praises the graduates throughout the Johnstown Housing Authority Employment & Training Program graduation ceremony at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College in Richland Township on Friday, January 31, 2025.

JARI Workforce Development Director Dave Grimaldi congratulates the individuals completing the Johnstown Housing Authority Employment & Training Program during a graduation ceremony at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College in Richland Township on Friday, January 31, 2025.

By Thomas Slusser
tslusser@tribdem.com!.?.! JARI Director of Workforce Development Dave Grimaldi said members of the program’s second accomplice have actually advanced to additional education at Penn Highlands or https://studentvolunteers.us other area schools for accreditation in fields including HVAC, emergency situation medicine and cybersecurity. The program is offered at no charge to participants and finished its very first mate in June. After Friday’s graduation, 2 more cohorts are scheduled, Grimaldi stated. The program was initiated by former JARI Workforce Development Director Debra Balog and

PA CareerLink Cambria County site administrator Jeff Dick.”This was one of the finest ideas we have actually had for discovering quality employees for employers in the location,”Balog said.”We created the concept of working with our public real estate systems since many people had transport and childcare barriers that kept them from accessing resources outside of Johnstown’s public housing.” U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Pittsburgh Field Office Director Michael Horvath stated the program has assisted individuals”

raise themselves up and get them connected. “He praised the graduates and the collaborators who made the program possible. The program has actually made HUD acknowledgment as a finest practice, a recognition provided to one authority yearly for particularly bettering the lives of its locals, Alberts said. The graduates got certificates and a standing ovation from friends and family in participation, in addition to Cambria County Commissioner Thomas Chernisky, Cambria Regional Chamber of Commerce President Amy Bradley and agents from U.S. Sen. John Fetterman’s workplace. Fetterman, D-Pa., and previous U.S. Sen. Bob Casey were instrumental in promoting the program, JARI President Linda Thomson said.