K
THE IMPACT OF BROADBAND: EDUCATION EDITION
Keys to the
FUTURE
GRCCA trains students for jobs and gives businesses a boost BY JEN CALHOUN
A
few years back, a group of business and industry leaders approached local school systems with an issue: They had too many jobs and not enough skilled workers to fill them. While it may sound like a good problem to have, it was still a problem. Without skilled employees, production and economic growth can slow. To solve the problem, local business leaders and educators worked together to develop Green River College & Career Academy, a vocational school that opened this fall on the campus of Hart County High School.
GAME CHANGER The school is an expansion of the high school’s vocational program and the result of a partnership with the Caverna Independent Schools system. There are classes and certifications in everything from accounting to pre-nursing to diesel mechanics. Courses are currently open to high school students, but there will be classes for adults in 2020. “I think it’s going to be a game changer for this community,” says Debbie Fowler, assistant superintendent of Hart County Schools and the administrator overseeing GRCCA. “It’s going to help locals get good, well-paying jobs without having to leave the region for training. It’s also going to help businesses recruit from a larger pool of skilled employees.” The school offers six different pathways for students, including basic diesel mechanics, diagnostic diesel mechanics, accounting, administrative support, pharmaceutical tech training and pre-nursing. The first opportunities started during the 2017-18 school year at Caverna High School with the industrial maintenance program. A $182,000 Dart Foundation donation funded the equipment for that program. Cary Barrett was selected as the coordinator for the GRCCA.
12 | September/October 2019
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