Page 92 - 914INC - July/August 2022

FILLING THE SKILLS GAP WITH TRAINING PROGRAMS
One organization helping to fill the
gap with industry-specific skills training
is Soulful Synergy, a New Rochelle- based group that provides workforce development programs with a focus
on economic justice and equity for underrepresented communities. Soulful Synergy’s lineup of programs allows participants to train for a variety of certifications in the construction trades, including those for OSHA standards,
site safety training, scaffold and flagger positions, plus CPR and fire guard. Soulful Synergy also offers a new program, dubbed The Urban Handyperson,
which provides participants with about 100 hours of hands-on skills training in carpentry. “We show them everything from worksite safety to basics like measuring, taping, hammering, painting, sanding, and finishing,” explains Dwayne R. Norris, COO and co-founder of
Soulful Synergy.
Soulful Synergy also offers appliance installation training and has partnered with local electrical firm Candela Systems to provide training for other, similar types of electrical efficiency work. “Several of our graduates have been hired by Candela,” Norris notes. Norris’ firm was also just selected by the Westchester County Industrial Development Agency for the first county-funded pre-apprenticeship training program for the construction trades, as part of a drive to hire more local workers. Many of their programs are run at The Guidance Center of Westchester, a community organization in Mount Vernon.
Westchesterites looking for training and career development opportunities in construction can also take advantage of local programs run by Westhab,
a community organization based in Yonkers, which supplies industry- recognized hard- and soft-skills construction training. BOCES of Putnam and Northern Westchester runs classes for OSHA certification, while Certified Site Safety of New York, a woman- owned firm in White Plains, offers a
variety of OSHA and NYC Department of Buildings training for New York job sites. Skills taught include things like scaffold installation and removal, traffic flagging and site safety positions. At SUNY Westchester Community College, those looking to enter or advance in the construction industry can enroll in courses for NYS EPA lead certification as well as to become a NYS mold assessor or remediator.
Local trade and industry organizations like the CIC and the Building & Realty Institute (BRI), based in Armonk, are
also working closely with construction and building trade employers in Westchester to help connect them
with qualified skilled labor. The
CIC offers scholarships and does outreach among young people to raise awareness of pre-apprenticeship trade
programs and other opportunities for them to train to work as carpenters, electricians, plumbers, truck drivers, or other tradespeople, notes Drapeau.
In addition, the CIC runs an annual Construction Career Day in the
spring, where students across the Hudson Valley can get an up-close
look at a wide variety of construction opportunities in the region. For its
part, the BRI is focused on helping its members solve the workforce shortage, and is sponsor and partner on some of the programs offered by Soulful Synergy at The Guidance Center of Westchester.
Above: Soulful Synergy provides training in a variety of construction trades. Opposite page: Workers with Kings Capital Construction Group on site at The Mitchell Apartments in White Plains in 2020.
Employment in the Hudson Valley Region’s construction sector is projected to grow by 21.5%, according to the New York State Department of Labor.
What’s Hot. What’s Next. What’s Needed.
2022 SKILLS 31
© Courtesy of Soulful Synergy