- Big growth in apprenticeships in North Carolina
- New apprenticeship program with Kraft Heinz
- Gauging civic learning in curriculum
Big growth in apprenticeships in North Carolina
North Carolina saw a 45% increase in registered apprentice enrollments and a 50% increase in registered pre-apprentice enrollments in 2023-2024, according to a new report.
Apprenticeship NC, the state’s apprenticeship agency housed under the North Carolina Community College System, registered 4,990 apprentices and 1,774 pre-apprentices in various programs between July 1, 2023, and June 30, 2024, the report says. It also registered 147 new apprenticeship programs and 19 new pre-apprenticeship programs.
In total, ApprenticeshipNC served a total of 15,090 apprentices, 2,701 employers and 872 sponsors throughout the fiscal year.
The programs saw particular growth in high-demand fields, with 806 pre-apprentices and apprentices registered in healthcare, 364 in early childhood education, 259 in information technology and 1,075 in the skilled trades.
Agency officials say they have higher goals for the 2024-25 fiscal year, with a target of registering 5,500 new apprentices, 1,930 new pre-apprentices, 160 new apprenticeship programs and 30 new pre-apprenticeship programs.
New apprenticeship program with Kraft Heinz
Parkland College announced this week the launch of the first-in-the-nation U.S. Department of Labor (DOL)-registered apprenticeship program for mechanical line technicians. The program is in partnership with food and beverage giant Kraft Heinz.
The one-year apprenticeship program supports recruitment efforts for line technicians at Kraft Heinz production facilities. It will combine 2,000 on-the-job training hours supervised by a Kraft Heinz mentor, coupled with Parkland’s industrial mechanics curriculum, according to a release from the Illinois college. After completing the program, participants will receive a nationally recognized journey worker certificate from DOL.
“This new program brings us to the forefront of partnership initiatives that prepare our students for in-demand, hands-on career training,” said Parkland President Pamela Lau. “It also continues building a robust area pipeline of entry-level employees armed with job-ready skills and experiences in today’s high-tech industries.”
Jobs for the Future was instrumental in connecting Parkland and Kraft Heinz leadership and provided expertise to the team on the new program, according to the college.
Gauging civic learning in curriculum
While community colleges provide students with a broad range of civic and community-engaged experiences, there is still a need for making civic and community-engaged opportunities more transparent, better resourced and more inclusive, according to a new report.
Nearly three-quarters (72%) of surveyed community colleges offer courses across their curriculum that include civic learning — the competencies needed for informed and effective participation in civic and democratic life — but only one in five (18%) of the courses are specifically designed as civic learning and are mainly designed to foster understanding of U.S. history and government systems, says the report from the University of Pennsylvania’s Annenberg Public Policy Center and the American Association of Colleges and Universities.
More than nine in 10 (92%) of survey participants indicated their two-year college offers community-based engagement experiences — such as service learning, internships, community-based research and clinical fieldwork — within the curriculum.
About 17% of respondents report their community college has a center devoted to civic learning and/or community-based engagement. Among those that don’t have such a center, more than half (59%) say that their college would benefit from having one.
The report, which is based on a survey last summer of leaders at 145 community colleges across the U.S., notes the important role that community colleges can play in developing civic-mindedness in their communities.
“Because of both the extensive reach and historical legacy of democratizing access to higher education, the nation’s community colleges are a crucial focal point for understanding how higher education advances students’ development of civic learning and skills-building and the ways in which students engage in communities,” the report says.
