“This grant is crucial for providing ongoing education to future service technicians in our surrounding communities. It is remarkable that these students can attend college without the burden of tuition,” said Travis McClure, Birkey’s Education and Recruitment Specialist.
The grant funding for the apprenticeship program totals over $200,000 and will be disbursed over the next three semesters. The grant was a one-time, competitive grant awarded to the East Central Illinois Workforce Board by the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity. The grant is managed by the Champaign County Regional Planning Commission.
Apprenticeship students, representatives of Birkey’s, ECI Workforce Board, RPC, and Parkland College gathered on Monday, October 30, for a celebratory luncheon at Parkland College.
“This was a significant opportunity for us to expand our support for apprentices in the agriculture industry. We are excited to assist these students in focusing more on their education and less on taking out loans or accumulating debt,” said Cassandra Dunham, Talent Development Specialist at Champaign County Regional Planning Commission, a partner organization at East Central Illinois workNet.
Birkey’s CNH Service Technician Apprenticeship Program provides over $6,000 in tools for students to achieve an Associate in Applied Science degree while completing a hands-on, paid apprenticeship alongside skilled Birkey’s technicians.
“It’s encouraging to see so many people partner together to invest in my future. This grant and the assistance from Birkey’s are making my career goals possible,” said Dane Shrimplin, a freshman in the apprenticeship program.
Birkey’s is excited about its partnership with the East Central Illinois Workforce Board and Champaign County Regional Planning Commission, and Parkland College to create more opportunities for those pursuing a career as a service technician.
East Central Illinois workNet is the local consortium of public workforce development programs. Learn more about local workforce development at www.ECIWork.net.
About Birkey’s: Birkey’s Farm Store has served Illinois, Indiana, and Missouri since 1954 with unparalleled product support. As your needs have evolved over the years, we’ve added the resources necessary to serve you. What was once a small shop operation has grown into a network of 20 locations and 520+ employees in our 100% employee-owned organization. This continued investment in people, infrastructure, technology, and tooling has enabled Birkey’s to become a leading dealer for Case IH Agriculture and Case Construction Equipment.
We’re headquartered in Champaign, Illinois, and we own and operate a network of full-service Case IH agricultural and Case construction equipment stores throughout Illinois and western Indiana. For more information about the areas we serve, visit www.birkeys.com.
One Response
Prophetstown is fortunate to have such an invested company in the future of their company and its future employees! As technology advances, the future apprentices are the ones that are needed to continue the advancement of agricultural needs.