Cash Grants

To find a field of qualified employees in your business is often a daunting task. No less so in Columbus, Ohio, where Barb Tipton, Executive Director, worked with the IEC Foundation to match with a funder in the area who also saw that need. Barb’s idea was to develop a Pre-Apprentice Program and bring that program to individuals within the community, giving them a “taste” of work in the electrical industry. The people at the Ingram White-Castle Foundation saw the value, and made a very generous investment in IEC Central Ohio’s plan. Ingram White-Castle Foundation’s emphasis is on efforts that empower young people with the desire for self-improvement, and full participation in free society. In other words, self-sufficiency. A match made in Heaven!

The IEC Central Ohio Pre-Apprentice Program took off and within a very short time the number of available slots had nearly maxed out. The program, spread over three weeks, brings candidates into the classroom for the first two weeks where certifications are earned and the concepts of tool recognition and use, electrician helper skills and basic math are taught. The last week of the program allows students to “shadow” at a actual job site.

Barb said that the objectives of the program are, “To encourage youth between the ages of 17 and 23 to pursue opportunities in the electrical trade and prepare them to enter apprenticeship with basic entry level skills, build confidence and introduce basic skills of the electrical construction trade; and meet the needs of members by providing entry level, prospective employees, with basic skills who are prepared to enter first-level apprenticeship.”

In addition, funds from the grant provide students with basic hand tools, hard hats, gloves, safety glasses, a basic Lock Out/Tag Out kit, and work boots. Students who successfully complete the program earn certification for completion of the Pre-Apprenticeship Program, OSHA-10 Certification, Personnel Life Certification, and Power-Tool Certification.

IEC Central Ohio contractor members now have a source of entry-level prospective employees, with good basic knowledge of skills and expectations, ready to enter the first-level apprenticeship and be productive on the job from Day One!