FORT WORTH, Texas (March 3, 2016) – Tarrant County College is giving hundreds of Fort Worth high school students an introduction to the high-demand career fields of aviation, transportation, logistics and information technology.
The College’s Center for Excellence in Aviation, Transportation and Logistics (CEATL) at Alliance Airport will host the students for hands-on learning and demonstrations March 7-11. The event is co-sponsored by the Fort Worth Independent School District, the Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce and United Way of Tarrant County.
Participants attend Arlington Heights, Southwest, O.D. Wyatt, Eastern Hills and Amon Carter-Riverside high schools and are involved in the High School Success Interventions (HSSI) program, funded by United Way of Tarrant County as part of the Learn Well initiative. During the event, students will tour the College’s advanced training facility; learn about the education required for career success; explore booths and labs staffed by instructors as well as representatives from business and industry; and practice interview skills with TCC career advisors and industry recruiters.
“In an increasingly global society, there is more demand than ever for transportation, logistics and technology professionals,” said Michael Lucchesi, TCC’s CEATL director. “TCC has strong partnerships with top companies and unique, high-tech training sites. By creating opportunities for high school students to experience these benefits, the College helps ensure a pipeline of skilled workers into the future.”
Innovative educational partnerships and programs such as this event are critical to continued economic development in Fort Worth, as noted in Mayor Betsy Price’s recent State of the City address.
“As Mayor Price emphasized, a strong education system is the foundation for Fort Worth’s vitality in every area,” said Bill Thornton, president and CEO of the Fort Worth Chamber. “TCC plays an important role in preparing the next generation for college and career success, and we are proud to work with the Fort Worth ISD and the College on this special opportunity to take students’ education beyond the classroom and into real-world settings.”
Information technology positions are among the highest-paying associate degree occupations in Tarrant County. IT professionals are needed in virtually every industry, and it is one of the nation’s biggest and most rapidly growing employment areas. Professionals include programmers, database administrators, network specialists, data security experts and system administrators.
Transportation and logistics workers range from pilots and aircraft specialists to dispatchers, distribution managers and more. Employment growth is projected in Tarrant County and beyond. The worldwide aviation industry, for example, is expected to need more than a million new commercial pilots and maintenance technicians in the next two decades, according to the industry report, Boeing’s 2015 Pilot & Technician Outlook.
At 163,500 square feet, CEATL is the largest aviation education facility in Texas. Students have access to professional training equipment, including a fuselage mockup of a G-280 Gulfstream aircraft donated by Gulfstream Aerospace and aircraft windows donated by Southwest Airlines. Logistics students learn in a warehouse laboratory with an on-demand warehouse management system. CEATL is part of TCC’s Northwest Campus.
TCC offers a variety of information technology programs across the District, with specialized facilities that give students access to industry-leading software and equipment. Training features include game design and programming labs, Cisco Networking Academy Labs, VMware Academy Lab with virtualization software, EMC Storage Technologies Lab with cloud-computing technology and Virtualized Network Environment Lab for information assurance and security courses, among others.