Senator Hassan Congratulates Graduates of Nashua Community College’s Microelectronics Boot Camp

NASHUA – In case you missed it, Senator Maggie Hassan delivered remarks on Friday congratulating graduates of the Nashua Community College Microelectronic Boot Camp, a 10-week program teaching students technical skills to help them obtain jobs at BAE Systems and other New Hampshire companies.

As governor and now in Congress, Senator Hassan has prioritized support for workforce development programs and preparing students to thrive in the 21st century economy. She introduced the bipartisan Gateway to Careers Act to support career pathway strategies – which combine work, education, and support services – to help individuals earn the credentials that businesses look for during the hiring process. The President also signed into law the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Improvement Act, which included critical priorities for New Hampshire that Senator Hassan fought for, including authorizing additional funding for states to implement high-quality career and technical education programs.

See below for coverage highlights:

Union Leader: On the fast track: 10-week boot camp leads to job with defense contractor

Pat Mackey graduated from a 10-week course on microelectronics Friday and is awaiting word on a job offer from BAE Systems.

If not for the course, “I’d probably still be in landscaping” making less money, said Mackey, who graduated from Trinity High School in Manchester.

“We get so much hands-on time” in lab work during the boot camp program at Nashua Community College, said the 21-year-old Litchfield resident.

Mackey and 10 classmates graduated from the microelectronics boot camp, newly minted skilled workers in an economy in need of them.

[…]Sen. Maggie Hassan, D-N.H., said the boot camp is a piece of a bigger puzzle to help solve the state’s workforce crunch.

“We have to continue to build more of these partnerships because the economy is changing quickly,” Hassan said. “The educational demands and needs to prepare our workforce will change on an ongoing basis, so we’ve had to really change the way we think about preparing students for the next generation of jobs.”

[…]

Nashua Telegraph: NCC honors another class of manufacturing workers

[…]A number of program alumni returned to watch these 11 graduates cross the stage, as well as faculty, industry partners and U.S. Sen. Maggie Hassan, D-N.H. The senator said when she travels across the state, business leaders tell her they need more highly skilled workers.

“One of the things we need to do is educate not only students, but their families about what today’s manufacturing careers look like: What kind of environment they’re in, what kind of training it takes, and what kind of work people do, and that’s one of the ongoing challenges,” Hassan said.

Another thing Hassan has heard while visiting other apprenticeship programs in manufacturing facilities is that when the families are brought in to see the kind of work that is done in modern engineering and manufacturing, some of the stigma goes away. A number of business leaders have also told the senator they outreach to guidance counselors and teachers.

The senator also said NCC is leading the way, as is the whole community college system, in partnering with high schools and even middle schools to help students explore potential careers as early as possible.

[…]

###