22 January ICC inks partnership with ATS to advance Mississippi’s skilled technical workforce January 22, 2021 By Thomas, Donna S. General 0 Itawamba Community College signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Advanced Technology Services, Jan. 19, to designate the Belden Center as one of five regional hubs for its skilled maintenance training. ATS is a leading solutions provider with more than 30 years of proven experience in reliability-centered industrial maintenance. According to the MOU, ATS will provide weekly skilled maintenance training at ICC- Belden for its regional team, but additionally will open those classes to other area business and industry, according to Dr. Joe Lowder, dean of economic and community services. ICC will provide space, instructors and market the classes to other companies to help ATS accomplish its goal, Lowder said. Also, the partnership will allow for other opportunities to grow the skilled trades in ICC’s area, such as the Top Tech event, a collaboration between ICC and ATS, which brought together top skilled employees who competed for a grand prize last fall at the Belden Center. Components of the competition included hands-on troubleshooting as well as the creation of a video by each of the competitors that was sent to the vice president of the company, which, as winner Stanton Sparks said, prompted the contestants to move out of their comfort zone. “This partnership will enable ICC to significantly impact skilled maintenance training in our five-county service district and beyond by reaching companies who haven’t had an opportunity to take advantage of services such as those offered by ATS,” said President Dr. Jay Allen. “ICC is always seeking strategic partnerships with industry to develop local talent in the workforce in order to help area business and industry grow and thrive.” The new model of instructional delivery at the Belden Center is being conducted by ATS Technical Training Manager Ben Patterson. “I enjoy the partnership we have built between Itawamba Community College and our business,” Patterson said. “I am looking forward to many great things to come from this for both teams. “At ATS, we pride ourselves in employee development and strive every year to continually make it better,” Patterson said. “Industrial maintenance training is the key to increased productivity.” The company decided in 2019 to implement the training hub concept in America to help it meet its goal of 75 percent of all technicians receiving hands-on training each year. Patterson said that the location of the five hubs currently allows 80 percent of the ATS workforce to be within a four-hour drive of a center. The Tupelo hub covers 12 ATS sites located in Alabama, Arkansas, Mississippi, Missouri and Tennessee. North Mississippi companies include Cooper Tire in Tupelo, Borg Warner in Water Valley and Southwire in Starkville. Other manufacturers are NTN Bower, Mercedes, Trinity Rail, Eaton, Caterpillar and Sloan Valve. Additional ATS hubs are located in Peoria and Schaumburg, Ill.; Greenville, S.C. and Longview, Texas. Patterson said that industrial maintenance teams provide the primary line of defense against machine downtime. Their electronic, mechanical, hydraulic and pneumatic troubleshooting capabilities often determine if product volumes are at or below the plant production goal. Challenges of today’s workforce include establishing and retaining a highly skilled, experienced team of maintenance professionals despite aging technicians who are retiring from the industry and more complex manufacturing technology. “We recommend employers strategically invest in technical training, such as that offered at the ICC hub, to reclaim control of their future machine support,” said Bill Sparling, senior program manager for ATS. The SkillPoint Technical Training program can be customized to any or all of the skills necessary for high-quality industrial maintenance work. Included are CNC/PLC, electronic, mechanical, robotics and other courses suited to fit operation needs. Related Articles ICC launches partnership with TimelyMD to connect faculty, staff, students with mental and physical health resources Itawamba Community College has launched a partnership with TimelyMD to connect full-time faculty and currently-enrolled students to the support and resources in both mental and physical health they need to succeed. TimelyCare provides on-demand 24/7 service that offers virtual health and well-being to currently-enrolled students and full-time faculty and staff for free, according to Dr. Brad Boggs, vice president of Student Services, including mental and emotional support, health literacy guidance and crisis management by masters-level behavioral health professionals. “It also provides a dedicated phone line for full-time faculty and staff to reach the TimelyCare team for guidance and support in cases of student distress.” Those covered may choose the visit modality that works best for them - video, phone or video chat. The simple, flexible scheduling enables students to choose their provider, day and time as well as cancel a visit and select the next available time that works best for them. Also, students can choose to add a parent, translator or even an adviser to the conversation. According to TimelyMD, “A modern virtual care platform starts with the technology that ... Itawamba Community College receives $100,000 and joins 41 other schools across the US as All Within My Hands' Metallica Scholars Initiative expands in year five Metallica’s foundation, All Within My Hands, continues its multimillion-dollar investment in critical workforce programs at community colleges nationwide. Among the schools, Itawamba Community College was selected from a competitive pool of applicants to receive $100,000 to transform the futures of students in the community. “It is a tremendous honor for Itawamba Community College to be selected as one of the recipients of the prestigious All Within My Hands grant, which will significantly impact our career education programs, providing funding for students to pursue a pathway and their best start,” said ICC President Dr. Jay Allen. “It is another indication of the success of the College and reinforcement of the mission that students and their success are our top priority.” The Metallica Scholars Initiative (MSI) was launched in 2019 by Metallica’s foundation, All Within My Hands (AWMH), in partnership with the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC). The workforce initiative marks its fifth year with an ambitious expansion into new curricula. MSI now directly supports 42 community colleges across 33 states, and by the end of this year, it will have helped ... ICC to partner with Get2College to offer onsite assistance with FAFSA completion Itawamba Community College is partnering with Get2College to provide onsite assistance with FAFSA completion, July 17 and 18. Times and locations are from 9 a.m.-3 p.m., July 17, Academic and Student Center room 231, Tupelo Campus; and July 18, Boggs Humanities Building room 103, Fulton Campus. The sessions are designed to assist current and incoming students with FAFSA questions and form completion. Appointments are preferred, according to Terry Bland, director of Financial Aid at ICC, but walk-ins will be accommodated. To schedule an appointment at the Fulton Campus, www.iccms.edu/FAFSAFulton or for the Tupelo Campus, www.iccms.edu/FAFSATupelo. Get2College is a college access program of the Woodward Hines Education Foundation, whose mission is to help more Mississippians obtain postsecondary credentials, college certificates and degrees that lead to meaningful employment. For more information, email finaid@iccms.edu. ICC, one of two in Mississippi, receives Metallica's All Within My Hands grant All Within My Hands, the nonprofit, philanthropic organization created by the members and management of Metallica, has announced the largest expansion of its Metallica Scholars Initiative and its largest grant to date. With the launch of year six, 18 new colleges join the roster of existing MSI community colleges. The Metallica Scholars Initiative now has a presence in 60 colleges across all 50 United States and the territory of Guam. Itawamba Community College, which is in year two, and Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College represent Mississippi. ICC’s $50,000 grant will focus on recruiting underserved populations to enable individuals to attain job skills and opportunities to equip them for employment to better position them for success and a better future. “It is a tremendous honor for Itawamba Community College to be selected as one of the continuing recipients of the prestigious All Within My Hands grant, which will significantly impact our career education programs and the lives of those who will receive scholarships to pursue a pathway and their best start,” said ICC President Dr. Jay Allen. “It is another indication of ... ICC provides innovative delivery of several workforce classes Itawamba Community College is providing innovative delivery of several Workforce classes to enable individuals to enroll in three online courses to meet the needs of its workforce partners as well as those of all individuals who are interested in skilling up or exploring job opportunities. The available courses, which are a collaboration between ICC’s Workforce and eLearning divisions, include Forklift: Train-the-Trainer, Forklift Operator Training and Lockout-Tagout: Isolation of Hazardous Energy. “ICC’s staff, particularly Workforce and eLearning, have done an exceptional job in transitioning current courses to an online format,” said ICC President Dr. Jay Allen. “With the reduction of face-to-face classroom and training opportunities as the College is impacted by COVID-19, they explored methods of meeting the needs of not only our workforce partners but individuals who are interested in attaining more or better skills to enhance their current or future job options. These three classes are only a start since work is continuing to offer additional opportunities.” The hybrid Forklift Operator Training course includes instruction on safely operating a forklift in industry ... ICC signs preferred candidate program agreement with MHP; only community college in the state selected Itawamba Community College signed a Memorandum of Understanding for a Preferred Candidate Program with the Mississippi Highway Patrol, Jan. 26, at the Tupelo Campus. The initiative is a pilot program that will be implemented at ICC, the only community college in the state selected. “Itawamba Community College is more than excited about this partnership with the Mississippi Highway Patrol,” said ICC President Dr. Jay Allen. “According to research, having successfully completed a college degree substantially improves the knowledge and abilities of officers on a vast range of areas from the criminal justice system to conceptual and managerial skills.” The agreement will allow those who are enrolled to pursue either an A.A. or A.A.S. degree in ICC’s Criminal Justice program, meet with an MHP recruiter and apply for the MHP Preferred Candidate Program to skip weeks of the Mississippi Highway Patrol Academy. In order to graduate from the MHP Preferred Candidate Program, students must complete one or more semesters of the MHP Candidates on Rapid Entry curriculum, earn the associate’s degree from ICC, meet the C.O.R.E. Patrol School PT requirements ... 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