Partnerships
Partnership Helps Underemployed Women Build New Careers
RALEIGH, N.C. (November 14, 2024) – Wake Tech is teaming up with local nonprofit Hope Renovations to help women who are unemployed or underemployed build careers in the construction trades.
Hope Renovations offers a pre-apprenticeship program that prepares women with the core skills they need to confidently enter the construction workforce. Wake Tech is partnering with the nonprofit on a five-week course that teaches students hands-on construction skills, including safety, hand and power tools, construction drawings, materials handling and basic carpentry.
Classes are taught in the WakeWorks Apprenticeship Center at Wake Tech's Beltline Education Center. Six students are in the current class, which started in October. The next class will be offered in January.
"We are excited to be part of this new initiative," said Andrea Mace, director of Workforce Initiatives at Wake Tech. "The college's mission is to provide access to education that transforms lives through economic mobility and personal fulfillment. This partnership is directly contributing to that mission by offering new opportunities and support to individuals who are striving to achieve their full potential."
In addition to the training students receive at Wake Tech, Hope Renovations provides four weeks of on-the-job experience completing home repairs and renovations for adults ages 55 or over and those living with a disability. The work gives students an opportunity to apply and practice their skills in a real-world setting and allows the clients to stay safe and independent in their homes.
Students like Tiana Ray say the initiative is giving them the training they need to learn a trade and launch a new career.
"Now, I am not afraid to use a hammer or a miter saw, which is my favorite," Ray said. "I want to start building houses in new developments. This program is wonderful, and now my friends want to sign up, too!"
Hope Renovations also offers career coaching, networking opportunities and other resources to help students who complete the program land a job with local employers.
"We are thrilled to partner with Wake Tech to bring this training to more Triangle women and nonbinary individuals," said Sarah Campbell, vice president of Training for Hope Renovations. "Wake Tech is the perfect place for our trainees to grow from tentative novices to confident tradespeople ready to launch long-term careers with family-sustaining wages."
Hope Renovations started in Carrboro four years ago and has expanded across the Triangle. The organization has a dual mission: prepare underemployed women and gender expansive individuals for construction careers and help older adults age in place.
The organization launched a similar initiative with Durham Technical Community College earlier this year.
This is just one of a variety of non-degree workforce training courses that Wake Tech offers to help students upgrade skills and prepare for industry-recognized credentials, certifications and licenses.
