PVAEC looks to expand opportunities through tech center

By Mike Lange
Staff Writer

    DOVER-FOXCROFT — Several employers are looking for truck drivers with Class B licenses in the Penquis region. These include oil companies, construction firms, paving companies and municipalities.

    So the Piscataquis Valley Adult Education Cooperative partnered with Tri-County Technical Center in Dexter to offer a 10-week, 80-hour Class B truck driving course for $2,800, less than half the cost of a commercial truck driving school. The fee also included a DOT physical and pre-employment drug screening test.
    But when the scheduled starting date of the course arrived — Dec. 6 — not a single person had enrolled. “We had a few phone inquiries, but no takers,” said PVAEC Director Thelma Regan.
    Undaunted, PVAEC has rescheduled another course starting Saturday, Jan. 17. Regan and others are convinced that once word gets out that TCTC is offering classes that appeal to adults as well as high school students, things will improve. “The CDL course is a door-opener,” Regan said.
    “We are trying to get unemployed folks to realize they can get good training in our region without leaving their hometowns,” said Patrick O’Neill, director of TCTC. “Also, Maine Highlands Federal Credit Union says it is willing to work with students who need loans to fund the tuition.”
    O’Neill added that the truck driving instructors at TCTC “has an excellent reputation and a success rate for getting folks licenses on their first try.”
    The collaboration between TCTC and PVAEC is in response to the Penquis region’s chronic need for workers with the expertise to fill existing or future job openings.
    New skills have taken a greater sense of urgency following a study by Eastern Maine Development Corporation that projects the loss of more than 1,500 jobs in the Bangor region during the next year.
    These include several pulp and paper mill positions as well as the pending closure of the UTC Fire and Security Plant in Pittsfield in March 2015. While about 25 percent of the employees live in Pittsfield, a sizeable percentage is from the Penquis region as well.
    “Matching up employers’ needs with an available workforce is a challenge,” said Regan. “But we have the ability to do it.”
    Another course being offered at TCTC that also appeals to adults is the ServSafe certification for food handlers, servers and anyone involved in the culinary field. TCTC’s culinary arts program already has a 16-hour block for ServSafe, so Regan said that it’s a perfect match for adults also seeking work in the field.
    PVAEC is also working with Eastern Maine Community College on plans for a heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) entry-level technician’s course, Regan said. “If we can offer a certification course at PVAEC, it will be a good head start for the course at EMCC,” she explained. “Larry Barrett (EMCC president) is very supportive of our programs at PVAEC.”
    Another program in the works through PVAEC is a whitewater rafting guide’s course in cooperation with Jeremy and Jessica Hargreaves of Northeast Whitewater in Greenville.
    TCTC is negotiating with the Maine Department of Education to use the former Rockwood School for courses designed to appeal to students interested in outdoor recreation, law enforcement and guiding. “Rockwood would be one of the locations under consideration for such a course, if things go as planned for TCTC,” Regan said.
    Other courses that could involve a partnership with TCTC include welding, nursing, information technology and law enforcement.
    Regan told the Observer that she’s very upbeat about the educational opportunities despite the early setback on the CDL-B course. “This time of year, people are involved in so many other things. And it’s especially stressful if you’re unemployed,” she noted.
    Regan is also scheduled to meet with the area’s state legislators on Thursday, Dec. 18.
    More information about the courses being offered is posted at www.pvaec.org or their Facebook page. Regan is also looking for instructors in various fields, so anyone who would like to share their expertise and job skills with students should call 564-6525.