SFCC plays host to PROTEC job-readiness training

The fourth year of PROTEC job-readiness training at Santa Fe Community College will take place April 22 to May 7.

The Professional Readiness and Technical Experience for Careers (PROTEC) course will focus on socialmedia marketing skills using Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint; customer service; and teamwork.

The course work is based on results from a survey of 126 local business that asked: “What skills do your employees need?” said Kris Swedin, PROTEC coordinator and also SFCC’s continuing education director.

Students completing the program will receive a “digital badge,” a new type of portable electronic certification that provides proof of a student’s skills in a specific task.

The PROTEC course involves 30 hours of class work over a two-week period plus 100 hours of an internship that generally is arranged through SFCC.

“You get to learn some skills and then you get a chance to apply them in the real world,” Swedin said. “We are soliciting employers to work with interns.”

To take part, one must first attend a PROTEC information session either at 4 p.m. March 26 at New Mexico Workforce Connection, 301 W. DeVargas St.; at 5:30 p.m., March 27 at the Santa Fe Higher Education Center, 1950 Siringo Road, Room 149; or at 10 a.m. March 30 at Santa Fe Community College, 6401 Richards Ave., Room 805.

PROTEC is funded by Santa Fe County in a partnership with SFCC and the Northern Area Local Workforce Development Board.