Media Advisory: PCC And Union Pacific To Unveil Mobile Welding Outreach & Skills Training Center Today -10/17/23

NORTH PORTLAND, Ore. – Media are invited to Portland Community College’s chain-cutting event for the new Mobile Welding Outreach & Skills Training Center. Thanks to the support of Union Pacific, PCC will join a handful of colleges nationwide that offer such a service that travels to rural, under-served communities to train students in the field of welding.

Event Details:

Date: Tuesday, October 17

Time: 1 p.m.

Location: PCC’s Swan Island Trades Center (6400 N Cutter Circle, Portland, OR 97217)
 

Event Highlights:

• Ceremonious Chain Cutting: Faculty will cut the symbolic chain via a welding torch to mark the occasion. Remarks from PCC President Adrien Bennings, Associate Vice President of Sales Operations & Dental at The Standard Jans Dykhouse (Foundation board vice president); and Union Pacific Senior Director of Public Affairs Aaron Hunt.
   
• Partnership Celebration: Learn about the partnership between PCC and Union Pacific, and how this innovative project will extend the reach of PCC’s skilled trades training programs into surrounding communities, creating a more robust workforce pipeline for Oregon’s leading industries and companies. Union Pacific provided an initial investment of $375,000 over three years to outfit the mobile training center and launch the center’s program. Funding from a Future Ready Oregon grant covered the cost of the tractor.
   
• Access to High-Demand Industries: Discover how this colorful, six-booth mobile welding classroom will provide individuals, who may have previously faced barriers to career development in the trades, with the opportunity to earn valuable certificates in high-demand industries. It is a way to bring training to rural and underserved parts of the PCC’s service district and provide training on-site at community based organizations, schools, Tribal lands, and correctional facilities. Training and career readiness events can also occur at career fairs and it can also be used for incumbent worker training. The first round of visits will be to the Hillsboro School District.
   
• Training Impact: The Mobile Welding Outreach & Skills Training Center can serve up to six students at a time. However, staff can stagger groups and rotate into the mobile lab. PCC can instruct around 15-20 with that approach. Depending upon the needs of the student, the college will be able to offer training from Shielded Metal Arc welding all the way through Advanced Waveform Gas Metal Arc Welding.
   

About Union Pacific: Union Pacific (NYSE: UNP) delivers the goods families and businesses use every day with safe, reliable and efficient service. Operating in 23 western states, the company connects its customers and communities to the global economy. Trains are the most environmentally responsible way to move freight, helping Union Pacific protect future generations. More information about Union Pacific is available at www.up.com.
 

About the PCC Foundation: The PCC Foundation is a nonprofit organization that removes barriers to education at Portland Community College through the power of partnerships. The Foundation’s vision is a community where anyone can thrive through education. A tax-exempt 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, the PCC Foundation mobilizes private support for student scholarships and educational programs. To find out more, call (971) 722-4382 or visit www.pcc.edu/foundation. 
 

About Portland Community College: Founded in 1961, Portland Community College is the largest post-secondary institution in Oregon and provides training, degree and certificate completion, and lifelong learning to more than 50,000 full- and part-time students in Multnomah, Washington, Yamhill, Clackamas, and Columbia counties. PCC has four comprehensive campuses, 10 education centers or areas served, and approximately 200 community locations in the Portland metropolitan area. The PCC district encompasses a 1,500-square-mile area in northwest Oregon and offers two-year degrees, one-year certificate programs, short-term training, alternative education, pre-college courses and life-long learning. Visit PCC news on the web at http://news.pcc.edu/