Kress Pens Article on Expanding Opportunities in Skilled Trades
President Anne M. Kress posted a piece on the President’s Forum on January 23, titled “Northern Virginia Community College: Expanding Opportunities in the Skilled Trades.” Her article outlines the critical importance of skilled trades and the initiatives NOVA is taking to grow capacity for these programs.
“Our goal is two-fold,” Kress said in the piece, “to enable more Virginians to accelerate their steps up the economic ladder and to meet the needs of the growing regional economy.”
NOVA’s Business Engagement Teams indicate that Virginia is among the states that face critical shortages of workers in skilled trades like welding, HVAC, electrical and plumbing and employers are desperate to hire.
“This year, NOVA will renovate welding and HVAC labs on two campuses and add new lab space at a third. These improvements and expansions will double the capacity of our welding program. The HVAC program also will have increased capacity and a new focus on commercial HVAC,” Kress said. She noted that NOVA’s Manassas Campus will break ground soon on a state-of-the-art Center for Building and Construction Trades, designed in consultation with industry professionals.
Submitted by:
Kathy Thompson, Assoc. Director of Internal Comms., KAThompson@nvcc.edu