The construction careers program at Mesa Community College will offer new certificate programs. Plumbing courses will be offered in Fall 2023, HVACr courses in Spring 2024, and masonry and solar courses will be offered in Summer 2024 on the Southern and Dobson campuses.
“We implement the construction programs in annual phases,” said David Cain Ph.D., MCC program director for construction. “These are the traditional jobs that keep our economy running. During the entire Corona period and in the foreseeable future, there is a high demand for skilled trades.”
“We have contractors, suppliers, and vendors calling weekly to hire our students,” Cain added. “In our parking lot east of the Applied Science and Technology Building, the program areas for the construction industry are being expanded. A fenced campus with three non-brick and mortar buildings composed of shipping containers and Quonset structures is planned, allowing the MCC to conduct courses outside in the building environment. Our goal and mission is to provide skilled professionals to meet the growing need in the greater Phoenix area.”
A final certificate can be obtained in two semesters. Students begin with an eight-week online course on construction safety, hand and power tools, calculations, and reading blueprints. The final eight weeks consist of hands-on training in a laboratory based on the student’s chosen specialty.
The 30-credit program is designed to offer day and evening courses and flexible teaching modalities including in-person, online-only, live online, and hybrid.
MCC student Agustin Hernandez works full-time in the construction trade and says he wouldn’t be able to attend classes without the evening classes.
After a few years in this field, Hernandez decided to continue his education. “I realized that I wouldn’t get anywhere without a degree,” he says. Hernandez also likes that “there are other students like me in the program, some younger and some older, who want to do what I want to do.”
Hernandez’s daughter, Lilly, also an MCC student, is on track to graduate from the construction management program in spring 2024.
Learn more about the MCC construction careers program at mesacc.edu/construction. To register, email Student Services Analyst Megan Taylor, megan.taylor@mesacc.edu.
yourvalley.net
https://yourvalley.net/stories/mesa-community-college-construction-trades-program-adds-plumbing-masonry-solar-classes,412469
