JHA Employment, Training Program Celebrates new Graduates
The Johnstown Housing Authority’s Employment and Training Program celebrated eight graduates of the program’s second associate who got in a new stage of life Friday.
The ceremony at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College in Richland Township marked a new start for the graduates, who are set to seek further education or employment in the Johnstown area, said JHA Executive Director Mike .
For the previous 4 months, those registered in the program finished courses offered by a collaboration amongst Penn Highlands, Johnstown Area Regional Industries and PA CareerLink.
The program included courses offered at Johnstown public housing neighborhood rooms to get rid of individuals’ transport barriers.
The curriculum included dispute management, task search and interview abilities, Microsoft Word and Excel, and life abilities management, along with school trip for a robotics bootcamp and trips of technology-based manufacturing business consisting of Kitron and referall.us Compass Systems.
The event Friday commemorated the 8 graduates of the program while acknowledging dozens more who registered, however pulled out after discovering work or other more education opportunities along the method.
PHOTO GALLERY|Johnstown Housing Authority Employment & Training Program Graduation
Bernice Sanders (ideal), of the Coopersdale section of Johnstown, celebrates 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.
Jeanne Vandergrift (front), of the Dale area of Johnstown, commemorates 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 (ideal), 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 ceremony 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 event at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College in Richland Township on Friday, January 31, 2025.
Dellia Gonzalez, of the Oakhurst area 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 praises 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 said members of the program’s second friend have actually progressed to more education at Penn Highlands or other area schools for certification in fields including HVAC, emergency situation medicine and cybersecurity. The program is provided at no charge to individuals and finished its very first cohort in June. After Friday’s graduation, two more mates are scheduled, Grimaldi said. 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 workers for companies in the location,”Balog said.”We came up with the concept of dealing with our public housing units because lots of people had transportation and child care 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 said the program has actually helped individuals”
lift themselves up and get them linked. “He praised the graduates and the partners who made the program possible. The program has actually made HUD acknowledgment as a best practice, a recognition provided to one authority each year for especially bettering the lives of its residents, Alberts stated. The graduates received certificates and a standing ovation from household and pals in participation, along with 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 contributed in championing the program, JARI President Linda Thomson stated.
