Rosaparks Ci 10 views

Something About Company

JHA Employment, Training Program Celebrates Brand-new Graduates

The Johnstown Housing Authority’s Employment and Training Program celebrated eight graduates of the program’s second mate who entered a new stage of life Friday.

The ceremony at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College in Richland Township marked a new beginning for the graduates, who are set to seek additional education or work in the Johnstown area, employment said JHA Executive Director Mike Alberts.

For the past four months, those enrolled in the program finished courses provided by a partnership amongst Penn Highlands, Johnstown Area Regional Industries and PA CareerLink.

The program included courses offered at Johnstown public real estate community rooms to remove individuals’ transportation barriers.

The curriculum included dispute management, job search and interview abilities, Microsoft Word and Excel, and life abilities management, as well as excursion for a robotics bootcamp and tours of technology-based production companies including Kitron and Compass Systems.

The event Friday celebrated the eight graduates of the program while acknowledging lots more who registered, but opted out after finding employment or other additional education chances along the method.

PHOTO GALLERY|Johnstown Housing Authority Employment & Training Program Graduation

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

Jeanne Vandergrift (front), of the Dale area of Johnstown, celebrates with graduates after receiving her Certificate of Completion during the Johnstown Housing Authority Employment & Training Program graduation ceremony at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College in Richland Township on Friday, employment 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 delegated right, is Pennsylvania Highlands Community College President Steve Nunez and JARI President and CEO Linda .

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

Dellia Gonzalez, of the Oakhurst section of Johnstown, with her daughter Dakota Marong, 3, applauds 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 employment Dave Grimaldi congratulates the individuals completing the Johnstown Housing Authority Employment & Training Program during a graduation event 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 stated members of the program’s second mate have actually progressed to further education at Penn Highlands or other area schools for accreditation in fields consisting of HVAC, employment emergency situation medication and cybersecurity. The program is supplied at no charge to individuals and graduated its very first cohort in June. After Friday’s graduation, two more mates are arranged, 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 among the best ideas we have actually had for discovering quality employees for companies in the area,”Balog said.”We came up with the idea of dealing with our public housing units because many people had transportation and childcare barriers that kept them from accessing resources beyond Johnstown’s public real estate.” U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Pittsburgh Field Office Director Michael Horvath stated the program has actually helped people”

lift themselves up and get them linked. “He congratulated the graduates and the partners who made the program possible. The program has made HUD recognition as a finest practice, a recognition offered to one authority yearly for particularly improving the lives of its homeowners, Alberts stated. The graduates received certificates and a standing ovation from household and friends in participation, along with Cambria County Commissioner Thomas Chernisky, Cambria Regional Chamber of Commerce President Amy Bradley and representatives from U.S. Sen. John Fetterman’s workplace. Fetterman, D-Pa., and former U.S. Sen. Bob Casey contributed in championing the program, JARI President Linda Thomson said.