CCRI’s process technology program gives Rhode Islanders a new career option

CHEMICAL REACTION: Beatrice Charles of Providence looks at some chemicals while studying in the Community College of Rhode Island’s chemical distillation and processing program at the Westerly Education Center. 
PBN PHOTO / MICHAEL SALERNO
CHEMICAL REACTION: Beatrice Charles of Providence looks at some chemicals while studying in the Community College of Rhode Island’s chemical distillation and processing program at the Westerly Education Center. 
PBN PHOTO / MICHAEL SALERNO

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EXCELLENCE IN WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT & PRODUCTIVITY: Community College of Rhode Island


JUST BEFORE 2018, officials at the Community College of Rhode Island heard from a Pfizer Inc. retiree about the need for process technologists in various manufacturing areas. At the time, the state community college and the Westerly Education Center were looking to expand their employer partners and got a group of about 10 employers together to discuss their needs.

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“We started talking about what their needs are, and there was an overwhelming need for talent, so we really started building a curriculum that worked not just for going on to college but that worked for employers,” said Cody Fino, CCRI executive director of workforce partnerships.

Those conversations eventually led to CCRI launching an innovative workforce development program in 2018 to help students forge a pathway to careers in manufacturing. The 10-week process technology training program, a partnership between CCRI and the R.I. Office of the Postsecondary Commissioner, covers several manufacturing topics, including quality assurance practices, environmental regulations, and operation and maintenance of process equipment.

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The program equips students, many of whom are underemployed, with skills they need to land jobs in manufacturing and processing. Such employment opportunities in the field include chemical processing, medical research, pharmaceuticals and materials testing.

“It is a business-first collaborative process with institutions of higher learning that allows for employers to get the person they need and lets Rhode Islanders get the training they need to get good jobs,” R.I. Postsecondary Commissioner Shannon W. Gilkey said.

Prior experience working in those industries is not required for students to participate in the program, but they do need a GED diploma or high school diploma to be eligible. Tuition is free thanks to funding from the state’s Real Jobs RI initiative. The program also combines classroom lectures and hands-on instruction with instrumentation and software.

Since the program launched six years ago, it has successfully trained more than 150 students, with a historical job placement rate of 75%. Graduates have found employment with more than 40 employer partners, including large corporations and small businesses. Notable employers range from mission-focused nonprofits, such as Edesia Inc., and small businesses such as Gray Sail Brewing to major corporations such as Amgen Rhode Island and Pfizer.

Graduates on average earn a starting salary of more than $47,000 upon completing the program. Program officials feel that reflects the program’s effectiveness in aligning training with industry needs and ensuring graduates are well-prepared for the workforce.

“It’s employer driven, demand driven and a real, true custom program to ensure that our students are prepared for many different fields within the manufacturing industry,” Gilkey said.

Fino says students in the program have an average age of mid-30s. The program consists mainly of people who are underemployed and are looking for a higher-level education to obtain the next step in their careers, he said.

“They are making somewhere around minimum wage, in the low $30,000s per year, and most are looking to up their skills to have economic mobility,” said Madeline Burke, CCRI dean of career and technical education and early college and community partnerships.

Once a student completes the program, though, they can also use it as a steppingstone for further advancement if they choose.

“Often, when students come to us to take part in the workforce programs, they are either unemployed or underemployed, so our immediate goal is to get them the skills they need to get a really great job,” Burke said. “But then that secondary goal is always how do we continue to stack onto those credentials so that they can continue to have mobility and the ability to provide for their families and contribute to the community?”

The training program provides six credits that can be used toward a larger certificate in biotechnology that can then also be stacked into either an associate degree or a bachelor’s degree. This ensures program graduates have room for advancement both educationally and throughout their career.

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