Oct. 10—Adult education programs offered by Calhoun Community College helped LaQuida Lewis of Decatur land a job in the region's growing automotive sector and are providing her the opportunity to get more training.

Lewis, who obtained her GED while completing the Ready to Work program at Calhoun, is now an employee of Limestone County's YKTA (Y-Tec Keylex Toyotetsu Alabama) plant, a Tier 1 supplier for Mazda Toyota Manufacturing.

The full-time job is a milestone for Lewis.

"I was working part time at a hotel while I was going to school to get my GED," she said.

Lewis said she just needed encouragement to pursue a GED.

"My husband is the one that told me I should go back and try my GED," Lewis said. "He's the real reason I went back to school."

According to Lewis, 12 people started the class with her, but she was one of only five that finished.

Calhoun has added additional adult education programs the past two months. In September, it released MAPS (Mobilizing Alabama Pathways), a skills-based workforce training program where students can earn up to four college credits.

"Students can become certified production technicians or they can become a certified logistics technician," said Mindi Russell, the program coordinator for the adult education program at Calhoun. "We're answering the call of industry in Alabama."

Before they begin the MAPs program, students must complete Ready to Work (RTW), which is an online training class where they work to earn their GED. MAPs will give students insight as to whether or not their career choice is right for them.

According to Russell, the RTW class has been taught at Calhoun for the last seven years.

"They already earn four credits through completing the Ready to Work course, so they can potentially wind up with eight credits by completing that course and the MAPs program," Russell said.

Industries like Mazda Toyota Manufacturing are working with Russell to bring workers into their company who are active in the MAPs program.

Soft skills

Lewis, 33 and a mother of two sons, has graduated from RTW and is now taking advantage of Calhoun's other new program, Greater Opportunities for Adult Learners (GOAL). It is an eight-week remediation program in which students can learn soft skills and other job-essential skills that they need to succeed at the industry they are pursuing.

Calhoun partnered with Drake State Community and Technical College to introduce GOAL to their schools on Oct. 1.

"I am learning how to deal with certain types of employers," Lewis said. "Because, sometimes I can be a little on the sensitive side and I learned in this program that you can work for a diverse group of employers who have different takes on the workforce."

She said she can now identify those types of employers and that it has helped her learn what to expect from them in the workforce and to not take things personally.

"So far, what has stuck out the most to me in this program is learning about employers," Lewis said.

Lewis has begun learning welding this semester. She said that obtaining her GED and learning workforce skills has not been easy, but she would not have had it any other way.

"I've never wanted anything in my life to come easy," Lewis said. "I've always wanted to work to obtain everything in my life."

Lewis said her children and husband have been her biggest supporters while she has been involved with these programs.

"I always tell my kids, 'You can't expect somebody else to want something for you if you don't want it bad enough for yourself,'" Lewis said. "My son actually reminded me that I said that whenever I failed one of my tests and I was crying, so that definitely gave me a boost."

Learning to land a job

There are a several reasons individuals can't complete a company's hiring procedure, and a common one comes at the outset with the application.

"They're not completing the application or completing it inappropriately and so industries tell them, 'We're not able to hire you at this time,'" Russell said. "However, if they go through GOAL, we will teach them how to fill out the application and the industry will review the application again."

Calhoun Adult Education Services offers free programs, and adults can apply at goalalabama.org.

"After they fill out the application on the website, someone will reach out to them and ask them to come in and complete their registration here on either our Huntsville or Athens campus," Russell said.

—wesley.tomlinson@decaturdaily.com or 256-340-2438.