A group of 19 individuals have completed Guam Community College’s latest ship repair boot camp and are now working in the industry.
Friends, family and supporters of the 19 Ship Repair Bootcamp XII graduates filled the GCC’s learning resource to celebrate their bootcamp participant at a graduation ceremony on August 8, the GCC said in a press release.
Marine Repair Boot Camp XII began June 14 and has completed hands-on and classroom training in Auto Body Painting (Paint Preservation) and Introduction to Diesel Technology and Preventative Maintenance I. Additional training and certifications in Heartsaver First Aid, CPR & AED, WorkKeys, Work Ethics and OSHA 10 were also successfully completed.
The keynote speaker at the ceremony was Comdr. Kris M. Blandin, commanding officer of Military Sealift Command Guam and Commodore of Military Prepositioning Squadron 3, who highlighted the importance of the ship repair industry on Guam.
“Make no mistake, the U.S. military is building on the island. I’m sure you all know that. It’s coming and it’s already underway all over the island, construction is taking place,” Blandin said.
The commander said more ships are coming and a Marine Expeditionary Unit from Okinawa is scheduled to be stationed here. They are expected to be on Guam next summer, meaning the island will need more ship repair capacity.
“Cabras, along with other shipyards in the area, is working very hard to fill that gap. But there is a gap, we need more people, more skilled workers, we need people who can do the job. If they’re not on the island, they’ll come from somewhere else. But I and most of you here would like to keep that on the island and grow it. That will create more jobs and more opportunities,” said Blandin.
The bootcamp’s employer sponsor, Cabras Marine Corporation, has offered all 19 successful graduates a position at their company.
“The best part about this boot camp is that all of these people will be working for Cabras Marine Corporation. We thank (Cabras Marine) for their commitment and support and partnership in all 11 ship repair boot camps, now 12,” said Mary AY Okada, President and CEO of GCC. “Here at Guam Community College, our main focus is building capacity for workforce development.”
GCC also received a $75,000 grant from the prestigious Metallica Scholars Initiative (MSI).
Okada said this money will be spent on setting up and running more ship repair boot camps.
“GCC received its first grant from Metallica and it was primarily to help build ship repair capacity, so we used this ship repair model to show the model we use for boot camps. Ship repair is at the forefront of what we’re trying to do here on Guam in terms of capacity building and it all fits into the mold of what Metallica is funding,” Okada said.
For more information about bootcamps, contact GCC’s Office of Continuing Education and Workforce Development at (671) 735-5640, extension 5411, or email [email protected].
