From KSBW .....
Hartnell College has been picked out of a nationwide field of schools to receive $100,000 to prepare Monterey County veterans for careers in Salinas Valley agriculture, and place them in jobs.
The Metallica nonprofit, All Within My Hands, will work with the Growers-Shippers Association of Central California and the Veterans Transition Center of Monterey County.
Twenty homeless veterans will begin studying at Hartnell in August, working to learn diesel mechanics on the Alisal campus. They'll also get paid on-the-job training with five local Growers-Shippers Association companies, including Taylor Farms, Automated Harvesting LLC, Tanimura & Antle, Dole Fresh Vegetables and Braga Fresh.
Students are expected to complete nearly 370 hours of on-the-job training, which will pay an average of $15 per hour. Their salaries will be paid by grant funds and the five participating companies.
Each of the 20 students will start their education with $2,300 in basic tools and a toolbox. They'll spend about 1,200 hours in the classroom and laboratory, and 460 hours working on resumes, interviewing and handling conflict, in addition to veterans counseling with the Hartnell College Veteran Transition Center.
The veterans are already working with VTC in Marina.
The VTC will provide students with one year of housing and transportation to and from work and school.
All five participating companies will meet students next month to celebrate the start of the program, and help match veterans with an employer, who will also provide a mentor for each.
The program hopes to put an emphasis on careers in the trades, and show that they can be well-paying career pathways.
The nonprofit's director said the band follows the success of the students. Hartnell College has been picked out of a nationwide field of schools to receive$100,000to prepare Monterey County veterans for careers in Salinas Valley agriculture, and place them in jobs.