SOUTH HOLLAND, IL – This spring South Suburban College (SSC) graduated its eighth class of the Highway Construction Careers Training Program (HCCTP). On May 19th, SSC presented certificates of completion to 16 students, 9 of whom have already been accepted into the trades, including Mary Green of Tinley Park who is working for Gallagher Asphalt of Thornton. She is now a member of Laborers’ Local 5. Alexander Johnson of Richton Park is now a member of International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 9 working for John Burns Construction.
HCCTP is one more short-term program that the college hopes will provide job seekers with more options. It is an intensive 450-hour program held over the course of 12 weeks, for 40 hours a week. Prospective students must meet three simple requirements to be eligible to start the application process: they must have a driver’s license, must have a high school diploma or GED, and must be at least 18 years of age. The application process starts with mandatory orientation followed by assessment testing. If the student passes the assessment test they are then given an interview and sent for a drug test before getting started.
SSC received the grant for HCCTP in the fall of 2013 from the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) and administered through the Illinois Community College Board (ICCB). In addition to an HCCTP Certificate, graduates of the program walk away with 30 hours of OSHA Certification, Illinois Flagger Certification and Lift Truck Certification (Class I-IV) from the National Safety Council, Crane Signaling, First Aid, CPR/AED, Aerial Lift Certification, and Certificate of Completion in Math for the Trades and Introduction to Welding and Blue Print Reading. They also gain valuable experience from hands-on training in carpentry, scaffolding erecting, cement finishing, and roofing. The class went on fieldtrips to the carpenter and pipefitters apprenticeship training centers to see firsthand what those trades do. Another aspect of the 12-week course is sitting for the National Career Readiness Certification Exam.
“It is very exciting to see doors opened for our graduates that may have been closed before,” said Rebecca Garcia, HCCTP Program Coordinator. “Watching someone come in with the desire to change their life and then see them do what is takes to make it happen is truly amazing!”
South Suburban College will be offering this Free Program again in the fall at their Oak Forest Campus. Orientation and Assessment Testing will be June 28-30 at the Oak Forest Center, with the program set to begin on July 25, 2016. For more information, please visit our website at www.ssc.edu/hcctp, or call (708) 225-6042, or email hcctp@ssc.edu. The Oak Forest Center is located at 16333 South Kilbourn Avenue, Oak Forest, Illinois 60452. For more information about all of SSC’s programs, admissions and registration, please visit www.ssc.edu or contact the Admissions Office at (708) 210-5718.
