Economic Development News

Women and students of color with dreams of entering the field of advanced manufacturing now have a better chance, thanks to a generous scholarship donation from the J.M. Huber Corporation. The company learned about Georgia Piedmont Technical College’s (GPTC) Industrial Maintenance pre-apprenticeship program and offered to establish a scholarship to support and encourage students to enter this high-demand career field. Pre-apprenticeship student Lakesha Hollaman, pictured bottom left...

Mandy Higginbotham, 2020 GOAL winner For Georgia Piedmont Technical College (GPTC) graduate and 2020 Georgia Occupational Award of Leadership (GOAL) award winner and Student of the Year, Mandy Higginbotham, taking the first step toward a brighter future was not easy – but necessary. “I had stayed at home for 10 years with kids,” Higginbotham, mother to five, said. “I had no experience, no education and decided I would never be in that position again.” So, Higginbotham did what any...

The U.S. Department of Labor (USDOL) announced the award of $4.85 million to a consortium of Technical College System of Georgia (TCSG) colleges to help meet labor market demands for a skilled workforce. The “Strengthening Community Colleges Training Grants” aim to address the skill development needs of employers and to support workers in gaining skills and transition quickly from unemployment to employment. The grants also build the capacity of community and technical colleges to...

Georgia Southwestern State University (GSW) and Georgia Piedmont Technical College (GPTC) signed a new articulation agreement which is designed to ensure a smooth transition from associate degree programs at GPTC to GSW's Long-Term Care Management (LTCM) program. "We are excited to partner with Georgia Piedmont Technical College in educating the caregivers our aging and disabled communities desperately need," said GSW President Neal Weaver. "We hope that in simplifying the transition from...

By way of DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office’s Vocational Careers for Inmate Rehabilitation Program, 13 former DeKalb County inmates now have new skills to use in the welding field. Launched in August 2019, the program trains and certifies inmates for careers in welding after they are released from jail and has a goal of redirecting inmates’ lives by offering them opportunities to learn those skills. “Our collective goal was to facilitate the re-entry of ex-offenders into our...

Mechatronics apprenticeship signing - ThermoPac apprentices Dec. 2020

Mechantronics apprenticeship signing Dec. 2020

To address the shortage of workers in advanced manufacturing jobs across the region, six industries in DeKalb, Newton and Rockdale counties signed agreements with Georgia Piedmont Technical College (GPTC) and ten student apprentices in Covington on Dec. 14. The agreements signify the beginning of a three-year commitment including both technical classroom instruction and on-the-job training. GPTC worked closely with regional employers, Rockwell Automation and community partners to develop a...

GPTC's EAGLE 2020 winner, Ruth Michael, was named as a Top 8 State Finalist in March. If there is no struggle, there is no progress — social reformer Frederick Douglas once said. For Georgia Piedmont Technical College (GPTC) Business Administration program student and 2020 EAGLE delegate Ruth Michael, the struggle was exactly what set her future goals into motion. “I came to the United States from East Africa, which is Eritrea, in 2004, searching for a new life,” Michael said,...

More than 350 jobseekers and 45 employers took advantage of the first-ever virtual job fair organized by Georgia Piedmont Technical College (GPTC) and its community partners in July. The success prompted the group to plan a second virtual fair in hopes of providing an innovative, convenient and safe way to strengthen the regional workforce during the current COVID-19 health crisis. U.S. Congressman Jody Hice (GA-10) lends his support to the newest online event — the Fall 2020...

With the addition of four new members, the August 25 meeting marked the first one of the 2020-2021 GPTC Board of Directors. This ten-member team of community and business leaders is committed to working in close cooperation with GPTC President Tavarez Holston to accomplish the college's mission and goals. The meeting was held virtually via WebEx, as the college continues to practice socially distancing in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. “Plans succeed because of many advisers. Our...

  Six male students housed at the Georgia Department of Corrections (GDC) State Transitional Reentry Center were honored with a virtual graduation ceremony on August 10, 2020, as members of Cohort 1 of GPTC’s Fast Track Welding Program. The program is designed to provide valuable welding skills for students that will allow them to gain meaningful employment upon release and to provide a new pipeline of highly skilled professionals for the welding industry. Areas of focus during the...