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A QUICK WAY ON THE CAREER LADDER By Gene Marrano
High school students – and young adults – can take advantage of the Virginia Registered Apprenticeship Program to help land a good job. Over the past several years, first Roanoke County and now Roanoke City and Salem public schools have teamed with their local government economic departments and employers like Graham White and the Western Virginia Water Authority to provide registered apprenticeship (RA) opportunities for juniors and seniors. It may lead to jobs or help them refine what path they wish
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to pursue at the collegiate level. Tom Rowley is the economic development manager for Roanoke County; he says his predecessor in that position (Jay Brenchick) was instrumental in attracting a Virginia Department of Labor and Industry office to the valley: “it was important to get their presence here, to really speed things up and move the effort along.”
