Project HOPE Contributing to SC Home Building Industry Workforce

The Midlands' home building industry now has a new workforce resource to tap into. Project HOPE (Homebuilding Opportunities for Positive Employment), a home building training and education program for persons with disabilities, opened its doors recently to help provide better employment opportunities for its students. Project HOPE connects people with disabilities with job and career opportunities to meet the labor demands of the home building industry by offering intensive training, employment and related services.

Funded through a grant from the U.S. Department of Education, Project HOPE is a joint effort between the Disability Action Center and the Home Builders Institute. Anyone, at least 18 years old, with a documented disability, who is interested in working in construction and/or related occupations of the home building industry can participate in Project HOPE. Participants must be willing to attend class up to eight hours a day for up to 12 weeks, remain drug/alcohol free, and commit to participating in the program.

Through Project HOPE, eligible students are given the opportunity to explore careers in the home building industry with two distinct options:

1. Students enrolled in a week-long Careers in Residential Construction Industry class, explore the broad array of home building career options, review employer expectations and industry standards, develop employability plans and receive job placement assistance.
2. Eligible participants interested in learning a craft/trade, enroll in HBI's Pre-Apprenticeship Certificate Training. This 12-week class offers instruction in safety, tool identification and use, theory, math, plan reading, basic carpentry, plumbing and electrical skills. Twenty percent of the training takes place in the classroom, 80 percent is hands-on, on community service projects. Graduates receive industry-recognized certification.

Located in Columbia, Project HOPE students renovated an abandoned transmission garage and made it their home. For more information about Project HOPE and the hiring process, contact Project Coordinator Marco Williams at 803-779-5121 or 800-681-6805, or email projecthope@dacsc.org. Project HOPE also has a MySpace page at http://myspace.com/projecthopecolumbia.