Utah Diesel Technician Pathways Program Shifts Into High Gear
SALT LAKE CITY (Dec. 18, 2017)—The Governor’s Office of Economic Development (GOED) today announced the expansion of the Utah Diesel Technician (Tech) Pathways program to include Alpine, Nebo and Provo school districts.
In addition to the new school districts, Geneva Rock, and its sister companies W.W. Clyde & Company and Sunroc have joined the program’s 11 existing industry partners to support and train students.
“Partnership between industry and education has made the Diesel Tech Pathways program a success, and this proven model of collaboration will help us achieve our goals,” said Gov. Gary R. Herbert. “We welcome Geneva Rock and the new school districts and look forward to continued partnership for proactive solutions to workforce challenges.”
The Diesel Tech Pathways program is designed to provide Utah students a direct pathway from high school and college to the workforce. It’s part of Talent Ready Utah, a program initiated by Gov. Herbert to improve both the education system and workforce in Utah by focusing on developing and enhancing job-training programs to meet current industry needs for more qualified workers. The goal with Talent Ready Utah is to fill 40,000 high-skill, high-paying jobs by 2020.
In addition to Geneva Rock, other industry partners participating in this program include Cummins Rocky Mountain, Jackson Group, Peterbilt, Kenworth Sales Company, Kilgore, Komatsu Equipment Corporation, Utah Transit Authority, Intermountain Bobcat, CR England, Thermo King and Wheeler Cat.
Since launching the program in 2016 in the Jordan and Canyons school districts, more than 100 students have enrolled and are currently going through the required classwork. Industry partners have provided partner schools with the most up-to-date technology including new engines and complete tool sets.
“We’re excited to participate in such an exceptional program that creates jobs and trains potential employees to make an immediate contribution to our industry,” said Jim Golding, president of Geneva Rock. “We look forward to collaborating with our industry partners to continue innovating and investing in our future workforce and to develop the programs that will help us meet the dynamic demands of our industry.”
For more information about the Diesel Tech Pathways program, visit www.DieselTechPathways.com.