JHA Employment, Training Program Celebrates Brand-new Graduates

The Johnstown Housing Authority’s Employment and Training Program commemorated eight graduates of the program’s second accomplice who entered a new stage of life Friday.

The ceremony at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College in Richland Township marked a clean slate for the graduates, who are set to look for further education or work in the Johnstown location, stated JHA Executive Director Mike Alberts.

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

The program consisted of courses supplied at Johnstown public real estate neighborhood spaces to remove participants’ transportation barriers.

The curriculum consisted of dispute management, job search and interview abilities, Microsoft Word and studentvolunteers.us Excel, and life skills management, as well as sightseeing tour for a robotics bootcamp and trips of technology-based production companies including Kitron and Compass Systems.

The ceremony Friday commemorated the eight graduates of the program while acknowledging lots more who registered, however pulled out after discovering work or other further education chances along the way.

PHOTO GALLERY|Johnstown Housing Authority Employment & Training Program Graduation

Bernice Sanders (ideal), of the Coopersdale area of Johnstown, celebrates after receiving her Certificate of Completion throughout the Johnstown Housing Authority Employment & Training Program graduation event 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 (right), of Johnstown, shakes hands with Johnstown Housing Authority (JHA) Executive Director Mike Alberts (center) while receiving 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. Searching, from left to 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 during the Johnstown Housing Authority Employment & Training Program graduation ceremony at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College in Richland Township on Friday, January 31, https://teachersconsultancy.com/employer/147805/collaboratedcareers 2025.

Dellia Gonzalez, of the Oakhurst area of Johnstown, with her daughter Dakota Marong, 3, praises the graduates during the Johnstown Housing Authority Employment & Training Program graduation event at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College in Richland Township on Friday, careers.ebas.co.ke January 31, 2025.

JARI Workforce Development Director Dave Grimaldi praises the individuals completing the Johnstown Housing Authority Employment & Training Program during a graduation event at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College in Richland Township on Friday, January 31, [Redirect-307] 2025.

By Thomas Slusser
tslusser@tribdem.com!.?.! JARI Director of Workforce Development Dave Grimaldi said members of the program’s 2nd cohort have progressed to more education at Penn Highlands or other location schools for certification in fields including HVAC, emergency medicine and cybersecurity. The program is provided at no charge to participants and its first accomplice in June. After Friday’s graduation, two more associates are scheduled, Grimaldi said. The program was started by former JARI Workforce Development Director Debra Balog and

PA CareerLink Cambria County site administrator Jeff Dick.”This was among the very best concepts we’ve had for finding quality employees for companies in the area,”Balog stated.”We developed the concept of dealing with our public real estate systems since numerous people had transportation and child care barriers that kept them from accessing resources outside of Johnstown’s public real estate.” U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Pittsburgh Field Office Director Michael Horvath stated the program has assisted individuals”

raise themselves up and get them connected. “He praised the graduates and the partners who made the program possible. The program has actually earned HUD acknowledgment as a finest practice, a recognition offered to one authority yearly for especially bettering the lives of its locals, Alberts stated. The graduates got certificates and a standing ovation from family and friends in presence, as well as Cambria County Commissioner Thomas Chernisky, Cambria Regional Chamber of Commerce President Amy Bradley and agents 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 said.