U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Sonny Perdue visits the Jane Addams Resource Corporation, an employment and training provider that offers skills training and support services to help lower-income and unemployed workers achieve self-sufficiency, in Baltimore, MD, on March 5, 2020.
While there, JARC Executive Vice President Regan Brewer-Johnson will lead Secretary Perdue on a tour of Computer Numerical Control (CNC) and welding training stations. Then he will participate in a roundtable discussion that includes USDA Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) Mid-Atlantic Regional Office Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Employment & Training Analyst Derrick Dolphin, JARC Executive Vice President Regan Brewer-Johnson, Site Director Elaine Carroll, MD Dept. of Human Services (MDDHS) Executive Director Netsant Kibret, MDDHS Office of Family Investment Administration Daiquiri Anderson; former participants Aja Robins, Micahel Spencer, and Grace Lawanga; current participants Demitri Gibson EL; Frank Birster and Cashante Benton; employer Strum Contracting Owner James Strum and COO Teresa Strum; Maritime Applied Physics President Mark Rice; and USDA FNS Regional SNAP Director Eric Ratchford
JARC provides training in the manufacturing and construction sectors, specifically welding and Computer Numerical Control (CNC) machining. Trainees learn how to write code to operate the CNC machine to precisely cut metal parts. Trainees work on projects to develop skills and a CNC certification. Through this JARC works to address the dual challenges of pervasive poverty and industry skills shortages.
USDA Photo By David Kosling. Original public domain image from Flickr