JHA Employment, Training Program Celebrates new Graduates
The Johnstown Housing Authority’s Employment and Training Program celebrated 8 graduates of the program’s 2nd associate who got in a brand-new phase of life Friday.
The ceremony at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College in Richland Township marked a clean slate for the graduates, who are set to seek additional education or work in the Johnstown area, said JHA Executive Director Mike Alberts.
For the previous four months, those registered in the program completed courses offered by a collaboration among Penn Highlands, Johnstown Area Regional Industries and PA CareerLink.
The program included courses provided at Johnstown public real estate community rooms to get rid of individuals’ transportation barriers.
The curriculum included dispute management, task search and interview abilities, Microsoft Word and Excel, and life abilities management, as well as school outing for a robotics bootcamp and trips of technology-based production companies including Kitron and Compass Systems.
The ceremony Friday commemorated the 8 graduates of the program while acknowledging lots more who enrolled, however pulled out after discovering employment or other additional education opportunities along the way.
PHOTO GALLERY|Johnstown Housing Authority Employment & Training Program Graduation
Bernice Sanders (best), of the Coopersdale section of Johnstown, celebrates after receiving her Certificate of Completion during the Johnstown Housing Authority Employment & Training Program graduation ceremony at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College in Richland Township on Friday, January 31, 2025.
Jeanne Vandergrift (front), of the Dale area of Johnstown, celebrates with graduates after getting her Certificate of Completion throughout the Johnstown Housing Authority Employment & Training Program graduation ceremony at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College in Richland Township on Friday, January 31, 2025.
RJ Montague (best), of Johnstown, shakes hands with Johnstown Housing Authority (JHA) Mike Alberts (center) while getting their Certificate of Completion throughout the JHA Employment & Training Program graduation ceremony at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College in Richland Township on Friday, January 31, 2025. Searching, from delegated right, is Pennsylvania Highlands Community College President Steve Nunez and JARI President and CEO Linda Thomson.
Marie Bradford, of the Oakhurst section of Johnstown, commemorates throughout the Johnstown Housing Authority Employment & Training Program graduation ceremony at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College in Richland Township on Friday, January 31, 2025.
Dellia Gonzalez, of the Oakhurst area of Johnstown, with her daughter 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 throughout a graduation ceremony 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 cohort have actually progressed to further education at Penn Highlands or other location schools for accreditation in fields including HVAC, employment emergency situation medication and cybersecurity. The program is supplied at no charge to participants and finished its first friend in June. After Friday’s graduation, 2 more mates are arranged, Grimaldi stated. The program was initiated by former JARI Workforce Development Director Debra Balog and
PA CareerLink Cambria County website administrator Jeff Dick.»This was among the best concepts we’ve had for finding quality staff members for employers in the location,»Balog said.»We created the idea of working with our public real estate systems because lots of people had transport and kid 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 people»
lift themselves up and get them linked. «He congratulated the graduates and the collaborators who made the program possible. The program has made HUD recognition as a best practice, an acknowledgment provided to one authority yearly for specifically improving the lives of its residents, Alberts stated. The graduates received certificates and a standing ovation from household and buddies in participation, as well as Cambria County Commissioner Thomas Chernisky, Cambria Regional Chamber of Commerce President Amy Bradley and representatives from U.S. Sen. John Fetterman’s office. Fetterman, D-Pa., and previous U.S. Sen. Bob Casey contributed in championing the program, JARI President Linda Thomson said.