Sullivan Commission Told Job Training is Insufficient

By Chris Frost
Eagle Times News Editor
NEWPORT, NH — Sullivan County residents are worried that job training in the county lacks needed offerings for students who are not headed to college.

During their Monday, Oct. 2, meeting, Sullivan County Commissioners received an update from UNH Cooperative Extension Community and Economic Development Field Specialist Becky Levy who explores the assets and opportunities around job training programs in Sullivan County, travels to observe programs and receives feedback on existing programs. 

She said people are concerned and want to see an increase in the level of programs, including at Newport’s Career Technical Education program. Suggestions she receives are particularly for high school and non-college track students to get into more professions. These could be job shadowing opportunities or apprenticeships, she said.

“They’re wondering if there are any paid opportunities or possible paid internships through the high school or technical colleges,” Levy said.

Step one for her is research, learning about growth patterns and where they are.

“Ideally, we would want training toward the higher pay scale of career pathways,” Levy said. “I’m trying to understand what the environment is here. There are a couple of different agencies that I’ve met and started to look at their programs.”

She said Discover Sugar River is working on tourism and the outdoor recreation economy and there is a state program for training bicycle mechanics as a career pathway.

“They have quite a few different program modules all set to help employers hire somebody and provide certification training in outdoor rec industries, but more on the manufacturing side,” Levy said. “The manufacturing history here is already so strong.”

Levy said her role is to identify the needs and opportunities and then intertwine them.

“A lot of folks from my group and a team from the state are working on recreational opportunities already,” she said. “These are easy models to adopt programs.”

Chairman George Herbert said manufacturers needs help, as do the trade industries.

She asked the commissioners if a funding source could be allocated to attract on-the-job training.

Herbert said the state is not helping the county with its tech programs.

Levy said conversations at the state level are focusing on business retention and expansion.

“The biggest piece of that is having skilled employees,” she said. “You can’t import because there is no housing.”