Signing Days Scheduled for Seniors Accepted to Made in Henderson County Apprenticeship Program

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HENDERSONVILLE, N.C. (May 1, 2019) – Twenty-one Henderson County Public Schools graduating seniors have been accepted into the Made in Henderson County Manufacturing Apprenticeship’s inaugural cohort, and will participate in celebratory “signing days” at their individual high schools.

Modeled after signing days for graduating seniors joining collegiate athletic teams, the Apprenticeship Signing Days will feature the students accepted into the apprenticeship program signing on with partner companies Elkamet, WestRock, Meritor, GF Linamar, or Continental. Instead of a jersey, company representatives will gift the students with a branded hardhat.

The first of the signing days has been scheduled for Tuesday, May 7, at 1:10 p.m. at Hendersonville High School where two students will be recognized for being accepted into[CW1]  the program. The dates of the signing days for the two students at East Henderson High, 11 students at North Henderson High, and six students at West Henderson High are forthcoming.

Through the ongoing “Made in Henderson County” partnership, HCPS, Blue Ridge Community College, the Henderson County Partnership for Economic Development, and local industry partners launched the Manufacturing Apprenticeship for graduating seniors this school year.

A registered North Carolina Apprenticeship with the N.C. Department of Commerce, the program will offer students a tuition-free Mechatronics Engineering Certificate, earned over the course of three semesters. Throughout the apprenticeship, students will spend one day in the classroom at Blue Ridge Community College, and the rest of the week working at one of the partner companies. Students will earn a competitive salary throughout the process and are guaranteed a job offer upon completion of the program.

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