Todd Parcinski Named Program Coordinator at TRCC MAC

Norwich, Conn. — Three Rivers Community College is pleased to announce the appointment of Todd Parcinski as the new Program Coordinator at the Three Rivers Community College Manufacturing Apprenticeship Center (TRCC MAC). The TRCC MAC offers manufacturing training programs for adults and high school student, along with the Manufacturing Pipeline programs, in our state-of-the-art facility in Groton.

Parcinski will be the program administrator and public face of the TRCC MAC, tasked with keeping it in the forefront of addressing the massive need for skilled trade workers and understanding local and national manufacturing trends. He will work closely with Eastern Connecticut Workforce Investment Board (EWIB), Eastern Advance Manufacturing Alliance (EAMA), and Electric Boat to update current courses and develop new ones to serve their workforce needs.  As the administrator for manufacturing workforce training, he will also oversee course development and program evaluation, and keep the community informed about the TRCC MAC.

Explaining his interest in the position, Parcinski said, “I was inspired to work for TRCC by my friend and colleague Mark Vesligaj. I am excited to be working here and will continue his legacy and what he and the team have built.”

“We are so grateful to have Todd on board and are excited by his big picture ideas that will guide our manufacturing program now and into the future,” said Acting Director of Non-Credit Programs Erin Sullivan.

Parcinski most recently worked at Pratt & Whitney as a Military Validation Assembly Engineer for their F119 and F135 engine programs in Middletown where he oversaw the teardown, rebuild, and instrumentation of development engines. Before Pratt & Whitney, he worked at BRG Radiator as a Design Engineer of cooling systems for diesel, natural gas-, and gas-powered engines that are used for onsite back-up power generation. He lives in Danielson, Connecticut with his wife Jen and their cat and dachshund.

For more information about the TRCC Manufacturing Apprenticeship Center, please visit www.threerivers.edu/mac.

READ MORE

In The News | As industries falter during COVID-19, one Eastern Connecticut initiative keeps filling jobs

Norwich, CT (The Bulletin, March 5, 2021) — Isabelle McKeon was 23 years old when she joined the Manufacturing Pipeline Initiative at Three Rivers Community College in Norwich.

It’s been nearly 3 years since she made the decision – changing careers from the massage therapy business because it wasn’t satisfying. Her mother, an employee at General Dynamics Electric Boat, told McKeon about MPI.

“I wanted something more consistent,” McKeon said.

McKeon took a 10-week drafting class in 2018. After graduating from the program later that year, she landed a job at Collins & Jewell Company in Februrary 2019, where she is a junior quality assurance engineer.

“It just gives you so many options for paths you can go down for jobs,” McKeon said of the manufacturing pipeline.

McKeon was looking for job stability when she landed in advanced manufacturing – a field that has stayed resilient through the economic downturn COVID sparked.

In New England, the advanced manufacturing sector has experienced only a 4.8% decline during the pandemic, versus a 28% decline for leisure and hospitality, according to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics.

Mark Hill, the president and CEO of the Eastern Workforce Investment Board, describes the MPI program as “strong” even while training was shut down March through June during the early stages of the pandemic. Class sizes have shrunk, too, reduced from 14 to nine.

But Hill said the program has sustained 95% job placement among students in the program before and during the COVID-19 pandemic, and there will be five MPI classes running in April alone, the greatest number of MPI classes that EWIB has had running at the same time.“There’s demand for these people, and, from an economic sense, there’s a ripple that creates another set of jobs in the economy,” Hill said.

Defense industry a lifeline
Andrew Bond, vice president of human resources for Electric Boat, during a Feb. 18 talk hosted by U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney, said that General Dynamics Electric Boat, the primary builder of submarines for the U.S. Navy, will hire 1,100 in 2021 as it aims to move the production of the Columbia class submarine from the location at Quonset Point in Rhode Island to the Groton facilities sometime in 2024.

The Manufacturing Pipeline Initiative was created in 2016 as a way for more people of all age groups to enter the manufacturing industry.

The Eastern Advanced Manufacturing Alliance (EAMA) determines what jobs need to be filled in the industry, and then companies are able to tailor the curriculum of the MPI member schools and colleges to fill that need.

EWIB then connects graduating pipeline students to the companies, so they can decide who they want to hire.

“They know that the people graduating from our program graduated with the curriculum they approved,” Hill said.

Hill said the original goal for MPI was to create 400 jobs in three to four years of its founding. MPI has created more than 700 jobs in the first year of operation, and currently has created a total of 1,738 jobs.

There are some, including Courtney, who said the job-creating ability of MPI will be important in Connecticut’s job market recovery.

“Let’s face it; there’s going to be folks out there whose jobs aren’t coming back. That always happens in recessions,” Courtney said. “That’s where keeping our eye on the ball and finding ways to connect people to the labor market is, if anything, going to be more pronounced.”

‘Fingers on the pulse’
TRCC and Quinebaug Valley Community College in Killingly are two of Connecticut’s colleges connected to the pipeline.

Mark Vesligaj, TRCC’s professor of engineering science and manufacturing campus director, said that educators, EAMA, EWIB and Electric Boat are able to communicate and work together on a regular basis – and it’s what makes the difference.

“We all have our fingers on the pulse,” Vesligaj said.

An important part of Three Rivers’ MPI efforts is the Manufacturing Apprentice Center at the Ella T. Grasso Technical High School in Groton that opened in 2019.

As a “flexible factory” the space has the equipment to do 10 different programs, and since it features equipment on wheels, it’s easy to readjust based on needs for a class. For things they can’t fit in the MAC, Three Rivers students can go and use some of Grosso High’s facilities, like for welding, when the high school’s students are away, making it cost-effective.

“There’s a big misnomer that manufacturing education is too expensive to do; it’s simply not true,” Vesligaj said. “If you do it right, you’re able to adapt to what industry needs, there’s an abundance of good work that can be achieved.”

At the MAC facility, Three Rivers Director of Manufacturing Brett Jacobson is one of the instructors. There have been some COVID-related changes with the classes, like having some subjects, like blueprint and math lessons, taught remotely, but the students still come to the MAC, with social distancing kept in mind.

“At the end of the day, the classes are hands-on, doing something,” Jacobson said.

Jacobson said that students are enticed by a job in advanced manufacturing because of how stable the work is, in no small part due to the $22.2 billion dollar contract for EB from 2019 to keep building submarines for the U.S. Navy until 2029.

“All of the publicity and action in our local contracts; I think that sends a pretty good message to folks that they have a lifelong career in some of this stuff,” Jacobson said.

Jacobson also said that unemployment and underemployment, especially during the pandemic, is also a driver for people without manufacturing experience to become students. According to EWIB, 80% of people enrolled in the MPI have no prior manufacturing experience, and the MPI graduates have higher retention than employees from other sources.

Even if someone learns manufacturing skills out of necessity, Jacobson said it doesn’t stop people from loving what they’re doing.

“One of the ladies came to me and said ‘Man, this is like arts and crafts on steroids,’” Jacobson said.

No worries
When the pandemic hit a year go and workers across the state and country began seeing major impacts to businesses, McKeon hardly flinched.

“We were considered essential (workers), so that is something I didn’t have to worry about, which I am thankful for,” McKeon said.

It’s one of the reasons advanced manufacturing can appeal to people. Jodi Clark, assistant director for QVCC’s Advanced Manufacturing Technology Center, said there are many more.

Clark said it can change the lives of people in tough situations, from getting a well-paying job for people struggling to get a roof over their head, to people rebuilding their lives after spending time in prison.

“In my eight years, I have so many success stories,” Clark said.

The QVCC facilities also have a wide range of tools available for students to learn with, including manual lathes and bench work areas. Clark said the QVCC program is split into two parts, with the first semester aiming to get students used to manufacturing fundamentals and teaching students how to follow a blueprint while making parts, math and other soft skills needed.

In the second semester, students use and make computer programs for CNC routers, and then the program helps students land a job, with QVCC’s own programs matching MPI’s rate.

“We’re not required to get our students jobs, but what’s the sense in teaching these students if they don’t end up getting a job,” Clark said.

Support for advanced manufacturing education is still going strong at QVCC, with the college awarded in January a $15,000 grant from the Gene Haas Foundation for the Advanced Manufacturing Center for the fifth time.

“We’re getting more and more companies interested in hiring our students, since there’s such a huge need for employees that at least know a little bit of something,” Clark said.

For all the work that has been done in the program, Hill said the colleges have been great partners for their ability to turn inexperienced people into viable employees.

“Those are huge building blocks for why the pipeline program is so successful,” Hill said.

McKeon said for people who aren’t sure if they want to join the MPI program, they can take a lesson from her: it’s never too late to switch careers, and skills can be applied elsewhere.

“You won’t outgrow it,” McKeon said.

 

— By Matt Grahn, Bulletin staff writer

The original article can be found here: “As industries falter during COVID-19, one Eastern Connecticut initiative keeps filling jobs”

READ MORE

Short-Term Career Training Courses Starting January through April

Three Rivers Community College is offering a variety of short-term career training courses that will help individuals expand their job skill sets or change career paths. Registration is open now on the 14 courses below. Whether a person has the goal of learning new skills, reinventing their career or personal enrichment, taking a short-term training course will fit their needs. Registration deadlines are coming up quickly, like the Phlebotomy Technician Program on January 22, so register now.

 

ALLIED HEALTH COURSES in some of the fastest growing careers in Connecticut

American Heart Association Basic Life Support (AHA BLS) – Tuesday, April 27. Registration deadline is April 20.

Certified Nurse Aide – Tuesdays and Thursdays, February 16 – May 13. Registration deadline is February 9.

Dental Assistant II – Mondays and Thursdays, February 18 – April 8. Registration deadline is February 11.

Community Health Worker *NEW* – Mondays and Wednesdays, February 8 – May 17. Registration deadline is February 2.

Medical Administrative Assistant Program (MAA) –

Administrative Skills in the Workplace with Office Simulation – Tuesdays, February 9 – May 18. Registration deadline is February 2.

Basic CPT & ICD-10-CM and Health Insurance – Wednesdays, February 10 – May 19. Registration deadline is February 3.

Additional MAA Online courses – offered monthly. Visit www.threerivers.edu/medical-administrative-assistant

Medical Billing and Coding Program (MBC) –

Administrative Skills in the Workplace with Office Simulation – Tuesdays, February 9 – May 18. Registration deadline is February 2.

International Classification of Diseases 10-CM (ICD-10 CM) – Thursdays, February 11 – May 20. Registration deadline is February 4.

Additional MBC Online courses – offered monthly. Visit www.threerivers.edu/medical-administrative-assistant

Pharmacy Technician Program– Tuesdays and Thursdays, February 16 – May 20. Registration deadline is February 9.

Phlebotomy Technician Program – Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, January 27 – April 7. Registration deadline is January 22.

 

VETERINARY ASSISTING PROGRAM for professionals and animal lovers

Veterinary Assistant II –Wednesdays, February 24 – May 5. Registration deadline is February 17.

 

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT COURSES

Real Estate Principles and Practices – Mondays and Wednesdays, March 8 – May 17. Registration deadline is March 1.

Security Officer Training: Guard Card Certification – Tuesdays and Thursdays, March 9 – March 18.  Registration deadline is March 2.

 

FREE TRANSITIONAL STRATEGIES COURSES FOR SKILL BUILDING – These FREE, beginner English and Math classes prepare students who plan to continue with a non-credit training program or a certificate or degree program at Three Rivers.

TLC English – Online, February 16 – May 17.  Registration deadline is February 9.

TLC English – Tuesdays and Thursdays, February 16 – May 17.  Registration deadline is February 9.

TLC Math – Mondays and Wednesdays, February 16 – May 17. Registration deadline is February 9.

TLC Math – Online, February 16 – May 17.  Registration deadline is February 9.

 

For more information and to register for these classes, call 860-215-9028 or visit https://threerivers.edu/workforce-education for more information.

READ MORE

In the News | Three Rivers gets $705,000 grant to teach welding to Electric Boat workers

Norwich — Three Rivers Community College has secured a $705,000 grant from Advanced Technology International to develop and teach a welding course, with a Navy certification, to Electric Boat workers.

Erin Sullivan, acting director of noncredit programs, explained that Three Rivers works in collaboration with EB, which needs welding support at its Quonset Point site in North Kingstown, Rhode Island.

Manufacturing director Bret Jacobson explained that because Columbia-class submarines start at Quonset Point, the site in Rhode Island is hitting its surge before the Groton site.

Whereas the Manufacturing Pipeline Initiative from the Eastern Connecticut Workforce Investment Board is designed to train the unemployed and underemployed in a variety of manufacturing jobs, and most but not all get placed at EB upon completion, this new course is specifically to train new EB hires in welding.

But it’s happening at the same place as some MPI courses: The 8,500-square-foot Manufacturing Apprenticeship Center, which is housed at Ella T. Grasso and opened in 2019.

Jacobson said there was a small opening at the MAC between MPI classes, so “to utilize all of our resources that we’ve already purchased for the manufacturing stuff to help out Rhode Island is nice.”

Jacobson said Three Rivers is scheduled to put on two welding courses under this new grant, one that’s about halfway done and one scheduled to start at the end of February.

The course runs from 3 to 11:30 p.m. — being at Grasso Tech, it has to be after-school hours — for nine weeks. There are 14 people in the current class and Jacobson expects about the same number in the second.

“Most of them are completely new to welding, and just showed an aptitude for it and a strong character that Electric Boat saw in them and hired them, and we’re training them up,” Jacobson said, adding that “honestly, they’re doing a fantastic job.”

He said staff adopt and teach to EB’s processes for this course.

Sullivan said the grant covers both instructional costs and equipment. Jacobson said the new equipment is a set of welders that are Navy certified, a certification Three Rivers hasn’t had before and that will help put students to work sooner.

He said the welders should be arriving in the next couple weeks, and Grasso Tech students will be able to use them, as well.

The funder, South Carolina-based Advanced Technology International, is a nonprofit that builds research and development collaborations, and helps “move innovation from industry and academia to the Government, particularly the (Department of Defense).”

Sullivan said Three Rivers also is working with the Southeastern New England Defense Industry Alliance on this project.

She noted the grant also supports a 9-hour trade exploratory program called The Boat for Women.

“The push really is to support the nontraditional student in this area, in the field of manufacturing, so that’s what we’re trying to bring to the area, to the region, to increase women in the trades,” Sullivan explained.

 

— By Erica Moser, Day staff writer

The original article can be found here: ‘Three Rivers gets $705,000 grant to teach welding to Electric Boat workers’

READ MORE

Basic Autocad

[mk_page_section bg_color=”#674b9f” bg_repeat=”no-repeat” bg_stretch=”true” full_width=”true” padding_top=”0″ padding_bottom=”0″ sidebar=”sidebar-1″][vc_column css=”.vc_custom_1469639571895{padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”][vc_empty_space height=”250px”][mk_fancy_title strip_tags=”true” tag_name=”h1″ color=”#ffffff” size=”80″ font_weight=”bold” txt_transform=”uppercase” margin_bottom=”0″ font_family=”Oswald” font_type=”google” el_class=”page-title”]Basic Autocad[/mk_fancy_title][/vc_column][/mk_page_section][vc_row fullwidth=”true” css=”.vc_custom_1469635777230{padding-left: 20px !important;}”][vc_column][ultimate_spacer height=”10″]

1. Home
2. Academics
3. Workforce & Community Education
4. Workforce Education
5. Business and Real Estate
6. Basic Autocad

[ultimate_spacer height=”20″][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row fullwidth=”true”][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1588942347031{margin-bottom: 0px !important;}”]

Basic CAD – AUTOCAD

Looking to Add to Your Skills – Join Us this Summer

This course, with the included lab, exposes the student to the current means of generating graphic images with computers. Topics covered include:

• CAD* overview
• Computer terminology
• Hardware descriptions and requirements, file manipulation and man­agement, 2D and 3D geometric construction, symbol library creation, dimensionng, scaling, sectioning, plotting, detail, and assembly drawings.
• This is a hybrid course with an online and classroom component.

Please Note:
Students will be using Blackboard Learn, an online learning management tool. Students will need to log in to CommNet prior to the first day of class to make sure they are able to access the course.

1. Go to https://my.commnet.edu
2. Enter your NetID using this format: your TRCC ID number without @ symbol Example:12345678@trcc.commnet.edu
3. Enter your password.

FIRST TIME USERS

*click “need initial password,” follow prompts

*update emergency contact information

*set security question.

*create personalized password using security question.

Course: CRN #51122

Instructor: Meredith Metcalf

Dates: ONLINE ONLY

Days: June 3, 2020 – July 28, 2020

Cost: $600 (Book not included)

Please fax or mail this registration form to Workforce & Community Education.

Prerequisites:

1. Provide proof of High School Diploma
2. Sign up at www.timecenter.com/trcc to take Accuplacer Exam for MATH only. Potential students need to place at K172 College Level Algebra to take this course.

Some typical Occupations using Computer Aided Drafting (CAD)

• Drafting (CAD)
• Architectural Drafter
• Electrical Drafter
• Civil Drafter
• Structural Drafter
• Tool Design Drafter
• Mechanical Drafter
• HVAC Drafter
• Plumbing Drafter
• And many other areas.

Learn how to register.

Download the brochure.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/3″][mk_custom_sidebar el_class=”subpage-sidebar” sidebar=”sidebar-19″][mk_button dimension=”flat” size=”x-large” url=”/admissions/how-to-enroll/workforce-and-community-education/” align=”center” fullwidth=”true” bg_color=”#99c539″ btn_hover_bg=”#cb1d5c”]REGISTER[/mk_button][mk_button dimension=”flat” size=”x-large” url=”#popmake-4375″ align=”center” fullwidth=”true” bg_color=”#99c539″ btn_hover_bg=”#cb1d5c”]REQUEST INFO[/mk_button][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1539874271094{margin-bottom: 0px !important;}”]

SNAP and WIOA Eligible

SNAP-eligible recipients – Please note this is not an enrichment program. The outcome of this training is employment. Please note that employment may directly impact your disability benefits.

WIOA is a voluntary work program. Participants must be able to work upon completion of the program.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row] READ MORE

Legislators Learn about the Expansion of Manufacturing Programs

On Monday, January 27, Three Rivers Community College hosted a Legislative Update that included a thorough briefing on the expansion of both credit and non-credit Three Rivers manufacturing programs. In attendance were State Senator Cathy Osten (D-Sprague), State Representative Doug Dubitsky (R-47), State Senator Paul Formica (R-East Lyme), and State Representative Gregg Haddad (D-54), as well as local business and school leaders, Three Rivers College Foundation Board Members, members of manufacturing associations, and faculty, staff, and students from the College.

Erin Sullivan, Acting Director of Non-Credit Programs; Brett Jacobson, Manufacturing Apprenticeship Center Director; and Mark Vesligaj, Professor of Engineering Science, spoke to the growth of their respective programs. Sullivan emphasized the variety of non-credit certificates and programs that allow students to move directly into employment upon completion. Jacobson explained how the College partners with manufacturing associations as well as with specific businesses to create classes tailored to meet the employment needs of companies like Electric Boat. Jacobson went on to discuss the projected growth of the number and types of programs that Three Rivers can offer with the advent of the new state-of-the-art Three Rivers Manufacturing Apprenticeship Center.

Covering the credit side of the manufacturing programs, Vesligaj discussed the multiple degree and certificate programs that allow students to begin working immediately or transfer on to continue their education at 4-year institutions. He stressed the explosive manufacturing growth that has occurred in Eastern Connecticut over the past four years and how Three Rivers has responded with a diversified approach to meet the needs of the expanding industry.

The program also included a panel of three former students who have graduated from different manufacturing programs at the College. Sara Armas attended Three Rivers as an Engineering Science student and has transferred on to UConn as a Manufacturing Engineering & Management (MEM) major. Wendy Gentile is a graduate of the Manufacturing Pipeline and is now a welder at Electric Boat, and Benjamin Collison has graduated from the Youth Manufacturing Pipeline and will soon be working as an Outside Electrician at Electric Boat. All three felt that their programs had prepared them for their next step to a job or continuing education.

READ MORE

TRCC Manufacturing Apprenticeship Center

[mk_page_section bg_image=”https://threerivers.edu/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/manufacturing-for-web-3.jpg” bg_color=”#674b9f” bg_repeat=”no-repeat” bg_stretch=”true” full_width=”true” padding_top=”0″ padding_bottom=”0″ sidebar=”sidebar-1″][vc_column css=”.vc_custom_1469639571895{padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”][vc_empty_space height=”250px”][mk_fancy_title strip_tags=”true” tag_name=”h1″ color=”#ffffff” size=”80″ font_weight=”bold” txt_transform=”uppercase” margin_bottom=”0″ font_family=”Oswald” font_type=”google” el_class=”page-title”]

TRCC Manufacturing Apprenticeship Center

[/mk_fancy_title][vc_empty_space height=”250px”][/vc_column][/mk_page_section][vc_row fullwidth=”true” css=”.vc_custom_1469635777230{padding-left: 20px !important;}”][vc_column][ultimate_spacer height=”10″]

1. Home
2. Academics
3. Workforce & Community Education
4. Workforce Education
5. Manufacturing
6. TRCC Manufacturing Apprenticeship Center

[ultimate_spacer height=”20″][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row fullwidth=”true”][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1574356418477{margin-bottom: 0px !important;}”]

Three Rivers Community College Manufacturing Apprenticeship Center

Three Rivers Community College offers many immersive paths to a career in manufacturing. Providing education and training for students ranging from high school to adults, Three Rivers programs range from five-week training courses to two-year degree programs. The latest development is the creation of the state-of-the-art Three Rivers Community College Manufacturing Apprenticeship Center (MAC), housed at the Ella T. Grasso Technical High School in Groton.

Bold and Innovative Approach

The 8,500 sq. ft. TRCC MAC is a bold and innovative approach to providing education for all aspects of manufacturing and apprenticeship training needs. The “flexible factory” simulates factory conditions using the actual machinery that students will encounter on the job. It has the capability to be re-configured based on the equipment needs of a course and can hold up to three different educational programs simultaneously.

Additionally, in an effort to be more responsive to industry needs, the scheduling of courses can be offered “on-demand” (instead of conforming to the traditional academic calendar). This educational model and space is the first of its kind in Connecticut (and the region).

Strong Partnership

Through a strong partnership with Grasso Tech and located within its newly opened state-of-the-art Technical High School, Three Rivers has the capability to have beginner and intermediate training for both adult and high school students. Courses are offered in nearly all trades including Machining, Welding, Electrical, Mechanical, Shipfitting, Pipefitting, Maintenance, Design Engineering, and any customizable program to fit an employer’s needs. Our 35 specialized instructors not only teach but have work experience as well.

95% Job Placement Rate

To date, Three Rivers graduates of these programs have a 95% job place rate. 80% of our students go to work at EB where their retention rate is 50% higher than with other EB employees. All this adds up to the Three Rivers difference in training employees who get the job done for our area manufacturers.

Learn more about how to apply into the manufacturing pipeline here. 

Read coverage of the TRCC MAC here. [/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/3″][mk_custom_sidebar el_class=”subpage-sidebar” sidebar=”sidebar-19″][mk_button dimension=”flat” size=”x-large” url=”#popmake-4375″ align=”center” fullwidth=”true” bg_color=”#99c539″ btn_hover_bg=”#cb1d53″]REQUEST INFO[/mk_button][/vc_column][/vc_row] READ MORE

Manufacturing

[mk_page_section bg_image=”https://threerivers.edu/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/manufacturing-for-web-1.jpg” bg_color=”#674b9f” bg_repeat=”no-repeat” bg_stretch=”true” full_width=”true” padding_top=”0″ padding_bottom=”0″ sidebar=”sidebar-1″][vc_column css=”.vc_custom_1469639571895{padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”][vc_empty_space height=”250px”][mk_fancy_title strip_tags=”true” tag_name=”h1″ color=”#ffffff” size=”80″ font_weight=”bold” txt_transform=”uppercase” margin_bottom=”0″ font_family=”Oswald” font_type=”google” el_class=”page-title”]Manufacturing[/mk_fancy_title][vc_empty_space height=”250px”][/vc_column][/mk_page_section][vc_row fullwidth=”true” css=”.vc_custom_1469635777230{padding-left: 20px !important;}”][vc_column][ultimate_spacer height=”10″]

1. Home
2. Academics
3. Workforce & Community Education
4. Workforce Education
5. Manufacturing

[ultimate_spacer height=”20″][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row fullwidth=”true”][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1710778972326{margin-bottom: 0px !important;}”]

Manufacturing Programs at Three Rivers

Three Rivers Community College offers many immersive paths to a career in manufacturing. Providing education and training for students ranging from high school to adults, Three Rivers programs range from five-week training courses to two-year degree programs.

The latest development is the creation of the state-of-the-art Three Rivers Community College Manufacturing Apprenticeship Center (MAC), housed at the Ella T. Grasso Technical High School in Groton.

 

Credit Programs

Three Rivers offers multiple degree programs that lead to careers in the manufacturing industry. Choose from the Manufacturing Engineering Technology, A.S.; Mechanical Engineering Technology, A.S. and more. These degree programs offer an excellent example of the merger between the traditional “hands-on” learning concepts and the newer computer application techniques in today’s engineering technology education.

Additionally, via the College of Technology, Three Rivers offers the seamless transfer degree of Engineering Science.  Upon completion of this degree, students can gain automatic acceptance and full credit transfer to seven public and/ or  private engineering universities in Connecticut where they can earn their bachelor’s degree in a variety of engineering fields.

Our faculty have advanced degrees, have worked in the field and care about student success. Graduates move on to careers specializing in operations, design, engineering, and development in manufacturing with starting salaries that range from $42,000 to $83,000. See a full list of our technologies degrees and certificates here. 

Non-Credit Manufacturing Training Programs

Adult Programs

Three Rivers began offering manufacturing training programs in 2016 through the Eastern Connecticut Manufacturing Pipeline, which is one of several workforce-related programs overseen and administered by the Eastern Connecticut Workforce Investment Board (EWIB). The very first course was Outside Machining, a 5-week training program. From there the programs multiplied, classes include Intro to Manufacturing, Intro to Planning, Shipfitting, Inside Machining, Welding, and Design-Engineering. Learn more about these programs here.

Most of the programs that Three Rivers offers are part of the Manufacturing Pipeline Initiative and were developed to address the massive need for skilled trade workers at Electric Boat and Eastern Advanced Manufacturing Alliance (EAMA) companies. Other programs have been designed to provide specific training for employers like Electric Boat, for example the Marine Draftsman Apprenticeship and the Metal Trades Council.

High School Programs

Three Rivers has extended the manufacturing programs to the high school level by partnering with local school districts that include the New London-Early College Opportunity (ECO) manufacturing program, the College Connections Program, and the Youth Manufacturing Pipeline. These programs prepare students for careers in manufacturing at institutions like Electric Boat or EAMA employers through coursework that can take place on high school campuses, the Three Rivers campus, or at the Three Rivers MAC training facility at Grasso Technical High School depending on the program.

Three Rivers Community College Manufacturing Apprenticeship Center

Three Rivers continues to expand its manufacturing training programs with our new 8,500 square foot, advanced Manufacturing Apprenticeship Center facility that is the first of its kind in the nation. The TRCC MAC, located in
Groton at Grasso Technical High School, is a flexible space that simulates factory conditions using the actual machinery that students will encounter on the job. It is the hub for manufacturing training of all levels in a variety of disciplines and trades. Many of the manufacturing programs for both adults and high school students that Three Rivers are being moved to this facility and newer programs are on the horizon. Learn more about the TRCC MAC here.

Opportunities for Area Manufacturers and Businesses

The Three Rivers Center for Business & Industry Training is part of the statewide Business & Industry Services Network (BISN). TRCC provides client companies with a variety of services which include: customized training; business consultation services, data gathering and referral, plus seminars and workshops.

Three Rivers Business Center cultivates and actively works at building long-term partnerships with Chambers of Commerce, business and industry clients, other state agencies, and 501©3 organizations. BISN is the entrepreneurial business development and training department of Three Rivers Community College. For your business and training needs, contact Erin Sullivan at esullivan@threerivers.edu. Learn more here. 

[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/3″][mk_custom_sidebar el_class=”subpage-sidebar” sidebar=”sidebar-19″][mk_button dimension=”flat” size=”x-large” align=”center” fullwidth=”true” el_class=”popmake-4375″ bg_color=”#99c539″ btn_hover_bg=”#cb1d53″]REQUEST INFO[/mk_button][/vc_column][/vc_row] READ MORE

In the News | New manufacturing apprenticeship center at Three Rivers is celebrated

Groton, CT (The Day, November 19, 2019) —

Manufacturing company employees, high school and higher education administrators, and elected officials gathered late afternoon Tuesday to celebrate the opening of the Three Rivers Community College Manufacturing Apprenticeship Center, located at Ella T. Grasso Technical High School.

The new Grasso Tech building opened in August, and this center was about seven years in the making.

The classes in the 8,500-square-foot MAC are not for Grasso Tech but are for Three Rivers students who are enrolled in the Manufacturing Pipeline Initiative, a government- and donor-funded program that trains unemployed and underemployed people for manufacturing jobs, mostly at Electric Boat but also at other regional manufacturers. It is run through the Eastern Connecticut Workforce Investment Board.

Three Rivers President Mary Ellen Jukoski said converting the college’s on-site manufacturing space would have been too prohibitive, but the timing of Grasso Tech opening and the memorandum of understanding to use the facility worked out perfectly.

The center opened for classes on Oct. 14, and the classes offered in the main space are intro to machine operator, intro to sheetmetal, shipfitting and electrical, MAC director Bret Jacobson said. The machine operator class was offered as a class called intro to manufacturing in the old Grasso Tech.

But the other three classes are new, ones that weren’t offered at Grasso Tech before because there wasn’t the space, Jacobson said. The center also allows students in the Manufacturing Pipeline Initiative to take classes during the day, from 7:30 a.m. to 1:50 p.m., which they couldn’t before, as spaces were in use by Grasso Tech students.

Jacobson estimates it cost about $1 million to outfit the space with equipment. The main area includes manual and CNC mills and lays; basic sheetmetal, pipefitting, metalworking and electrical equipment; and trainers for hydraulics, pneumatics, electrics and mechanics.

There’s also another space in the MAC for welding and design classes; welding students are currently in the sixth week of a 10-week program.

Jacobson said there are currently 14 people in the intro to machine operator class and 13 in the welding class at Grasso Tech; the other classes haven’t gotten started yet. He manages 36 instructors, and the courses offered vary based on employer need.

“What I particularly like about this is the flexibility this affords us as a state, as a region, and as employers and education advocates,” said Mark Ojakian, president of Connecticut State Colleges & Universities, which includes Three Rivers.

Grasso Tech Principal Patricia Feeney said the new center is a “wonderful opportunity for our students,” if they graduate and decide to do something other than their trade.

One of the employers who said he has “got great results” as a result of the Manufacturing Pipeline Initiative is Collins & Jewell co-owner Chris Jewell, who commented, “As time goes by, we’re going to need to multiply this. We’re going to need to do this more and larger.”

Jukoski, Jacobson, Ojakian, Feeney, Jewell and EWIB President John Beauregard were among the many attendees for the ribbon-cutting Tuesday, with the ribbon hung in front of a mock-up of a submarine hull that Jacobson said students use to get practice in low-lighted areas with interferences in front of them. The rest of the MAC, though, is very bright.

— By Erica Moser, Day staff writer

The original article can be found here: ‘New manufacturing apprenticeship center at Three Rivers is celebrated’

From The Day Photo Gallery

READ MORE

Professor Mark Vesligaj Receives a Fulbright Award

Three Rivers Community College is excited to announce that Professor of Engineering Science Mark Vesligaj has been awarded a Fulbright International Education Administrators Seminar award to Russia. The Fulbright Program aims to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries and is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government. Fulbright alumni include Nobel Laureates, Pulitzer Prize winners, MacArthur Fellows, Presidential Medal of Freedom recipients, and thousands of leaders across the private, public and non-profit sectors.

President Mary Ellen Jukoski said, “We are thrilled at Three Rivers Community College that Professor Vesligaj has been awarded a Fulbright Award. I want to congratulate Mark on this great honor, which acknowledges his important work on Three Rivers manufacturing programs.  It is a wonderful opportunity for him and for international exchange for our College as well as for the colleagues he will be meeting and traveling with over his stay.”

In March, Professor Vesligaj will travel with four other American scholars to St. Petersburg, Moscow and Tver to focus on the role of community colleges in higher education and within the local community. They will exchange knowledge and best practices with Russian administrators in postsecondary education and lay the groundwork for institutional relationships and collaborations. The overall objective of this Fulbright Scholar Program is to prepare U.S. and Russian institutions to internationalize their campuses, broaden the scope of their programs and provide mobility opportunities. The program includes site visits to Russian institutions of higher education that allow the scholars to meet senior administrators, government officials and community representatives where they will explain how the U.S. community college system develops educational programs that combine workforce training and civic education and prepares students for additional higher education.

Excited about the opportunity, Professor Vesligaj said, “I am honored to represent Three Rivers Community College through this Fulbright Scholar Program. The opportunity to meet and collaborate with the other four awardees from across the United States and share the community college higher education model with our Russian hosts is most exciting. We aim to build lasting relationships and opportunities for our colleges and students as we learn about the postsecondary education system from our Russian hosts. Personally, I am interested in sharing
Three Rivers innovative workforce development model in manufacturing and returning home with fresh insights and new domestic/international partners, to provide even more opportunities for our students, our college, and our community.”

Professor Vesligaj has been a Professor of Engineering Science and Technology Studies at Three Rivers Community College since 2016. At the College, he also serves as the Campus Director for the Connecticut Advanced Manufacturing Council, the Program Coordinator of the CT College of Technology and the Campus Director of the NASA CT Space Grant Consortium. Prior to that, he held a similar position at Quinebaug Valley Community College after ten years working as an engineer in the private sector. Vesligaj is the holder of four patents; has been the recipient of over $7,000,000 in grants and funding awards to support his higher education work; and has been twice recognized with the Connecticut Congress Merit Award. He holds a Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Carnegie Mellon University and a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from North Carolina State University.

READ MORE