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JHA Employment, Training Program Celebrates new Graduates
The Johnstown Housing Authority’s Employment and Training Program commemorated eight graduates of the program’s 2nd associate who entered a new phase of life Friday.
The ceremony at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College in Richland Township marked a new beginning for the graduates, who are set to seek additional education or work in the Johnstown location, stated JHA Executive Director Mike Alberts.
For the past four months, those enrolled in the program completed courses offered by a partnership among Penn Highlands, Johnstown Area Regional Industries and PA CareerLink.
The program consisted of courses offered at Johnstown public real estate neighborhood rooms to remove participants’ transport barriers.
The curriculum included dispute management, job search and interview skills, Microsoft Word and Excel, and life abilities management, as well as school trip for a robotics bootcamp and tours of technology-based manufacturing companies consisting of Kitron and Compass Systems.
The event Friday celebrated the eight graduates of the program while acknowledging dozens more who registered, however pulled out after discovering work or other additional education opportunities along the method.
PHOTO GALLERY|Johnstown Housing Authority Employment & Training Program Graduation
Bernice Sanders (ideal), of the Coopersdale section of Johnstown, celebrates after getting 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 receiving her Certificate of Completion 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 (best), of Johnstown, shakes hands with Authority (JHA) Executive Director Mike Alberts (center) while receiving their Certificate of Completion during the JHA Employment & Training Program graduation event at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College in Richland Township on Friday, January 31, 2025. Looking on, employment from left to right, is Pennsylvania Highlands Community College President Steve Nunez and JARI President and CEO Linda Thomson.
Marie Bradford, of the Oakhurst area of Johnstown, celebrates during 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, praises 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 congratulates the individuals finishing the Johnstown Housing Authority Employment & Training Program during a graduation ceremony at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College in Richland Township on Friday, January 31, 2025.
By Thomas Slusser
tslusser@tribdem.com!.?.! JARI Director of Workforce Development Dave Grimaldi said members of the program’s second associate have actually advanced to more education at Penn Highlands or other area schools for certification in fields consisting of HVAC, emergency situation medication and cybersecurity. The program is offered at no charge to participants and graduated its first cohort in June. After Friday’s graduation, two more friends are set up, Grimaldi said. The program was initiated by former JARI Workforce Development Director Debra Balog and
PA CareerLink Cambria County website administrator Jeff Dick. »This was among the best ideas we’ve had for finding quality employees for companies in the area, »Balog stated. »We came up with the idea of dealing with our public real estate systems because lots of people had transportation and childcare barriers that kept them from accessing resources beyond Johnstown’s public housing. » U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Pittsburgh Field Office Director Michael Horvath said the program has helped people »
raise themselves up and get them linked. « He congratulated the graduates and the partners who made the program possible. The program has made HUD acknowledgment as a finest practice, an acknowledgment provided to one authority annually for specifically improving the lives of its locals, Alberts stated. The graduates got certificates and a standing ovation from friends and family in participation, as well as Cambria County Commissioner Thomas Chernisky, Cambria Regional Chamber of Commerce President Amy Bradley and representatives from U.S. Sen. John Fetterman’s office. Fetterman, D-Pa., and former U.S. Sen. Bob Casey were instrumental in championing the program, JARI President Linda Thomson said.