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Photo by Devin Courtright/The Advocate
VESL instructor Tim Polly shows VESL students how to start and operate machinery.
VESL students get certified
Advocate
Industrial Technology’s VESL (Vocational English as a Second Language) program will have its students graduate the Machine Tool certification program next week, March 19, after six months of training.
The VESL program, for the last 10 years, has helped non-English speaking students find work and further their education.
“The Focus is on Employment and training,” said Angelique Kauffman, career pathways and workforce development specialist. “We’re hoping that they can get an entry level position with the certificate.”
VESL Machine Tool student Hedzeel Ramirez, a Cuban engineer and former VESL Welding student two years ago, says, “The program is good. We are learning a lot of new things we didn’t know.”
Currently there are 14 students in the VESL Machine Tool program, who Kauffman said were layed-off from their previous employers. She said there were 16 people but “one of them was called back to work and the other one just couldn’t keep up his attendance unfortunately.”
“It’s a very intense program, so you have to have your life in order because you are in school full-time for six months; so it’s important that they have a stable home life,” said Kauffman.
Unlike the VESL Welding program, being around as long the VESL program itself, the VESL Machine Tool program is relatively new; being around for three years. The Machine Tool VESL program is a six month program, beginning in August 2009 and ending in March 19, 2010.
Machine Tool instructor Tim Polly, who has taught machine tool technology for 20 years, says the VESL students “come in with really diverse backgrounds.”
“It’s been a really interesting program to be involved in,” said Polly. “We typically have (students) anywhere from six to ten different countries from all around the world.
“We got two or three guys right now that are Cuban immigrants, who have degrees in engineering in their home country,” said Polly.
The VESL students learn everything in their second language, being English, and because of that, Kauffman says, “It takes them more time” to fully understand everything.
ESL Metals instructor Lisa Hillyard, who has been teaching at MHCC for 14 years, meets with the VESL students four times a week teaching Basic English and “shop lingo” they’ll most likely encounter in the work place. She also says the VESL program is “nationally the only VESL program” of its kind in the U.S.
“My goal is to give them a successful college experience,” says Lisa. “It’s a great program.”
Along with Machine Tool classes and ESL classes, the VESL students attend an Employment Preparation class from 9am to 10:50am once a week for 10 weeks during their last term; being the winter term for Machine Tool students in the VESL program. Kauffman said the class goes over everything from skill identification, applications, and resumes, to online job applications.
“They learn to work online, attaché a resume in an email, access company websites, and those types of things; that not everybody knows how to do,” said Kauffman.
Kauffman said the VESL students also participate in company tours, “to see what the work is like and ask questions.” She says the VESL students tour about up to six companies within the term.
Kauffman says, “Part of my job is to go out there and build those relationships with companies and it’s challenging because we know there’s going to be job openings in machining because a lot of individuals are of retirement age and we know there’s going to be new entry level positions. But in this economy, it’s really slow and so students have to be really prepared and do everything they can in the job search,” said Kauffman.
“Machining is still considered to be an in-demand occupation and in metals in general: integrated metals, welding, machining. In Particular in the machining field, there are not a lot of young people who are choosing the trades and so we want to get more individuals that are prepared to take those machining jobs when a lot of the work force retires,” said Kauffman.
The VESL program started out as a bi-lingual Spanish program in the mid ’90s as a welding partnership with the Integrated Metals program. In 2000 it became the VESL program, being open to all learners of English.
Rodrigo Rodriguez, a former forklift driver for Standard T.V. & Appliance, made a choice to go back to school, after 10 years of working in the job force.
Unlike most students in the VESL program, who join because of being laid-off, Rodriguez actually decided to go to school to not only pursue a career in welding but did it mostly for his family.
“I’m just doing it for my family,” says Rodrigo. “I’m one of the people who (thinks) first your family.”
Kauffman says, “For most of our (VESL) students, the goal is to be able to work while they are going to school. The certificate is the first step that allows them to be employable and also continue their education.”
“A lot of the (VESL) students choose to continue studying towards the associate’s degree,” said Kauffman.