JHA Employment, Training Program Celebrates new Graduates

The Johnstown Housing Authority's Employment and Training Program celebrated eight graduates of the program's second friend who went into a brand-new phase of life Friday.

The ceremony at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College in Richland Township marked a brand-new start for the graduates, sowjobs.com who are set to look for additional education or work in the Johnstown location, said JHA Executive Director Mike Alberts.

For the past 4 months, those registered in the program finished courses offered by a partnership among Penn Highlands, Johnstown Area Regional Industries and PA CareerLink.

The program included courses offered at Johnstown public housing neighborhood spaces to remove individuals' transportation barriers.

The curriculum included dispute management, task search and interview skills, Microsoft Word and Excel, and life abilities management, along with sightseeing tour for a robotics bootcamp and tours of technology-based production business consisting of Kitron and Compass Systems.

The ceremony Friday celebrated the eight graduates of the program while acknowledging dozens more who registered, but opted out after discovering work or other more education chances along the way.

PHOTO GALLERY|Johnstown Housing Authority Employment & Training Program Graduation

Bernice Sanders (best), of the Coopersdale area of Johnstown, commemorates 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 during the Johnstown Housing Authority Employment & Training Program graduation event at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College in Richland Township on Friday, January 31, 2025.

RJ Montague (right), of Johnstown, shakes hands with Johnstown Housing Authority (JHA) Executive Director Mike Alberts (center) while getting their Certificate of Completion during the JHA Employment & Training Program graduation ceremony at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College in Richland Township on Friday, January 31, 2025. Looking on, from left to right, 이지론 is Pennsylvania Highlands Community College President Steve Nunez and JARI President and CEO Linda Thomson.

Marie Bradford, of the Oakhurst area of Johnstown, celebrates 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 section of Johnstown, with her daughter Dakota Marong, 3, applauds 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 participants finishing the Johnstown Housing Authority Employment & Training Program throughout a graduation event at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College in Richland Township on Friday, January 31, 2025.

By Thomas Slusser
[email protected]!.?.! JARI Director of Workforce Development Dave Grimaldi stated members of the program's second accomplice have actually advanced to additional education at Penn Highlands or other location schools for accreditation in fields including HVAC, emergency medicine and cybersecurity. The program is provided at no charge to individuals and graduated its very first accomplice in June. After Friday's graduation, two more cohorts are arranged, Grimaldi stated. The program was initiated by previous JARI Workforce Development Director Debra Balog and

PA CareerLink Cambria County website administrator Jeff Dick."This was among the finest concepts we've had for discovering quality employees for companies in the area,"Balog stated."We came up with the idea of working with our public real estate systems because lots of people had transport and childcare barriers that kept them from accessing resources beyond Johnstown's public real estate." U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Pittsburgh Field Office Director Michael Horvath stated the program has helped individuals"

lift themselves up and get them connected. "He praised the graduates and the partners who made the program possible. The program has made HUD acknowledgment as a best practice, a recognition provided to one authority annually for particularly bettering the lives of its homeowners, Alberts stated. The graduates received certificates and a standing ovation from household and pals in presence, as well as Cambria County Commissioner Thomas Chernisky, Cambria Regional Chamber of Commerce President Amy Bradley and https://sowjobs.com representatives from U.S. Sen. John Fetterman's office. Fetterman, D-Pa., and previous U.S. Sen. Bob Casey were important in promoting the program, JARI President Linda Thomson stated.