|
Katrina Relief Training Program Opening in Jackson, Miss.
Expanding its relief program for displaced workers in the Gulf Region to a third location, Home Builders Institute (HBA), the workforce development arm of NAHB, announced that on May 12 it will begin providing Operation Reconstruct mentorship and on-site learning for 40 students in Jackson, Miss.
Students who complete the program over the next year will receive the industry recognized Pre-Apprenticeship Training Certificate (PACT) as well as job placement support.
Funded by Mississippi’s Department of Employment Security, the Jackson program will provide young people ages 18 to 21 with trades training, employability skills and academic studies. The Home Builders Association of Jackson and the state HBA of Mississippi will participate.
Two years ago, HBI and partner The Paxen Group Inc. launched Operation Reconstruct to train New Orleans residents to assist in the city’s rebuilding efforts. In its first year, the program trained 145 students and successfully placed 75% of them in residential construction jobs.
That success led to its replication in Gulfport, Mississippi in 2007.
When Operation Reconstruct was first established, the Home Builders of Association (HBA) of Greater New Orleans played an instrumental role in the training process. Local builder members worked with students on community service activities and as part of their on-site training.
“Operation Reconstruct has proved to be an effective solution for communities in the Gulf Region,” said HBI trustee and Mississippi native Annette Rayburn. “Many people in Mississippi are still putting their lives back together piece by piece. This program gives these young people an opportunity to gain valuable skills, practice their trade while still enrolled in class and know their training will also help others rebuild their communities and their lives.”
For more information on Operation Reconstruct, e-mail Dennis Torbett at HBI, or call him at 800-795-7955 x8908.
Home Builders Institute Offers New Program to Teach Hispanic Adults English
 Sed de Saber™-Construction Edition is an easy-to-use, take-home learning tool created exclusively for the construction industry by the Home Builders Institute to improve communication, quality and safety on the job site.
The product, now available at www.seddesaberconstruction.com, uses proven LeapFrog technology to allow workers to listen, record and play back their pronunciation of more than 500 vocabulary words and 340 phrases. Participants who practice 30 minutes each day will complete the program in just four months. Learning at home, on their own time, also eliminates scheduling conflicts.
 Sed de Saber™-Construction Edition was developed by a team of subject matter experts assembled through HBI — including superintendents, craft skills experts, remodelers and builders — to ensure that the information is relevant to today’s home building workforce. To address worker safety issues related to the language barrier, HBI created a seventh book based entirely on the NAHB-OSHA Job Site Safety Handbook.
NAHB members can purchase the learning system, all seven books and a skills assessment to chart employee progress for $395 per kit. The non-member price is $495. Order today and empower your workers to learn English at www.seddesaberconstruction.com.
|
