Community College of Baltimore County (CCBC) has a long history of involvement with registered apprenticeship (RA) through skilled trades and continues to expand its footprint in non-traditional industries such as health care. Current related grant projects include AACC Expanding Community College Apprenticeships (ECCA), U.S. DOL Scaling Apprenticeship through Sector-Based Strategies, U.S. HHS grant to create Apprenticeships for Opioid counseling, and a Maryland Apprenticeship Innovation Fund (AIF) 2.0 grant. CCBC partners with 10 Baltimore area union and non-union programs in the Building and Construction Trades.
National Apprenticeship Week 2019
In September 2019, CCBC began discussions with the Maryland Division of Rehabilitation Services (DORS) to host a National Apprenticeship Week 2019 Registered Apprenticeship Open House at CCBC’s Liberty Center. On November 12, approximately 50 prospective apprentices/students from DORs, and other constituents, plus about 10 representatives from various agencies (U.S. DOL, MD DOL, and local workforce boards) attended. The event included multiple discipline areas and showcased facilities and laboratories at the Randallstown Extension Center.
Best Practices
- Expand RA outreach to individuals with disabilities.
- Hold events inside or near laboratories that can be set up for an audience to promote visual and kinesthetic exposure and engage participants.
- Describe and engage participants on the components of RA, how RA is different than an internship, and the benefits to the apprentice with specific occupation/career examples.
Helpful planning strategies
- Involve multiple programmatic areas within the college plus marketing and facilities.
- Create press releases, social media, and agendas for events.
- Prioritize when employers are available and secure their commitment first.
- Make sure events are on the national U.S. DOL NAW list with the correct logistics information.
- Use signage to make sure participants arrive at the desired location.
- Conduct test runs to ensure the flow and technology work well.
- Plan for contingencies for not having enough space including virtual and live streaming options—apprenticeship events are popular.
- Deliver the apprenticeship information to meet the audience’s interest and challenges.
- Play short videos on a loop to provide information about relevant occupations.
- Thank all contributors.