$1M granted for construction program
State funds will expand CTE program over three years
Mendocino College and North Coast state Sen. Mike McGuire announced Friday morning that the college would receive $1 million in state grants to expand the college’s Career, Technical Education (CTE) construction program over the next three years and increase program opportunities for students.
Current students from the CTE construction program were at the ceremony, along with Mendocino College Interim Superintendent/President Eileen Cichocki, Mendocino County Supervisors Carre Brown and John Haschak, Chair of Lake County Board of Supervisors Moke Simon and various college and public officials involved with the construction program.
The money will go to the Sustainable Construction and Energy Technology Program of Mendocino College, which provides classes for hands-on technical skill development with sustainability concepts and business skills that students use in technical industries. They offer three certificates in Construction, Renewable Energy, and Building Efficiency & Performance. The funds will be used for a fulltime program leader, new faculty, an advisory council, expanded classes, more industrial space for classes, partnerships with local advisers, to bring in more students, and to hire bilingual instructional aides.
The college said its goal over the next few years is a 40 percent increase in the number of students served in the program and to have 75 percent of students either get a job or see their wage increase in their field of study within six months of participating in the program.
McGuire said during the announcement that discussions with Mendocino College and local business and political leaders in the area made clear there has not been enough local labor to rebuild the homes and communities in Lake and Mendocino counties that the region needs.
“We want this investment over the next three years to be a shot in the arm for our local economy. But most importantly, to be able to provide residents of the North Coast with the tools they need to be able to start a career, to raise their family, and to contribute in the community they call home,” McGuire said.
Both Lake and Mendocino counties have seen wildfires over the past few years destroy homes and properties throughout the region. The college believes that with the new grant funds, it can use the money to bring more trained workers into the workforce and increase the recovery process of rebuilding homes and buildings.
Volunteers and local organizations have worked on reconstruction in Mendocino County, but some people who lost homes in the 2017 Redwood Complex Fire are still waiting for help rebuilding their homes.
Mendocino County Board of Supervisors Chairman John Haschak said that Mendocino County lost 349 homes and 295 other structures in the Redwood Complex Fire of 2017. However, the county has only rebuilt around 100 residences and 33 accessory buildings so far, putting a pressing timeline on the need for more quailed workers now and in the future.
“This enhanced CTE program will create pathways of sustainable jobs for our young people. The expansion of the Construction Trades Program will provide long-term family-sustaining jobs here at home and help rebuild our communities,” Haschak said.
Lake County Board of Supervisors Chairman Moke Simon said they are doing everything they can to rebuild in Lake County as quickly as possible. However, the fires that have happened over the last few years have stretched Lake County’s construction resources. He believes the construction program can give the next generation of the construction workforce good work and help Lake County rebuild.
“This will be for the ladies and gentlemen behind me to have that long-term career that they are looking for. I’m glad they are sacrificing their lives to go through this program, and I appreciate every effort they are making to help rebuild our communities and join a workforce that will be longlasting and sustainable for a lifetime,” Simon said.
Mendocino College Interim Superintendent/President Cichocki said that Mendocino College would soon advertise for the position to coordinate the entire construction program. The college is hoping to have that person hired within a few months so that they can move the construction program forward and begin expanding program options for students.
“The single person coordinating it is going to be a great achievement because right now we have parttime faculty who work in the program and teach in the program, but not one single person who is hired to coordinate it and make those industry connections, so that’s going to be the key,” Cichocki said.