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Honolulu Community College has received an anonymous $150,000 gift to support three popular workforce development programs.

“Honolulu Community College is grateful for this extremely generous donation to our campus. We will be able to upgrade our machinery and equipment to provide a state-of-the-art training experience for the students in those programs,” shares Honolulu CC Chancellor Erika Lacro.

Programs supported

  • $52,000 has been designated to support the sheet metal and plastics program purchase a classroom air conditioning unit, student tool kits, drafting sets, consumable materials and a downdraft sander/grinder table.
  • $92,000 has been designated to support the refrigeration and air conditioning program’s lab training modules. The program’s training modules are unique and have been designed to test the student’s academic comprehension through applied learning in the shop. Each semester, students assemble, disassemble and perform a variety of tasks for program faculty to gauge their overall understanding of the various refrigeration systems encountered in the workplace. Over time, these modules have needed overhauling. This gift will help modernize the overall shop training platform to better prepare students for the workforce.​
  • $6,000 will help fund the plumbing program supplies including welding rods, flat bars, soldering and brazing supplies.

Honolulu CC trades program critical to construction industry

Honolulu CC has historically coordinated apprenticeship training for various industry training programs. In partnership with the business sector, apprentices from various sectors attend required courses at Honolulu CC and start working toward becoming a certified journeyworker in the State of Hawaiʻi.

“Honolulu CC’s refrigeration and air conditioning and sheet metal and plastics program have maintained a high level of student demand and job placement,” said Honolulu CC Dean of Transportation and Trades Keala Chock.

“Over the last few years, student enrollment has averaged a little over 100 program majors collectively. Job placement data reflects that 85 percent of the students are employed after six months upon graduation and 90 percent are employed after 12 months. With our credit program, state apprenticeship training records indicate that we have approximately 300 students registered as part of the plumbers training program,” said Chock. “When you consider all these factors, the long-term impact of our two-year training programs is enormous and critical to support the needs of our building and construction industry.”

University of Hawaiʻi Foundation President and CEO Donna Vuchinich added, “This gift will help the college equip students with the resources, skills and expertise they need to succeed in today’s workforce. This donor is truly making a difference.”

A UH Foundation news release

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