JHA Employment, Training Program Celebrates new Graduates

The Johnstown Housing Authority’s Employment and Training Program celebrated eight graduates of the program’s second mate who got in a new stage of life Friday.

The ceremony at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College in Richland Township marked a clean slate for the graduates, who are set to seek additional education or work in the Johnstown area, stated JHA Executive Director Mike Alberts.

For the past 4 months, those enrolled in the program finished courses provided by a partnership among Penn Highlands, Johnstown Area Regional Industries and PA CareerLink.

The program included courses offered at Johnstown public housing neighborhood rooms to get rid of participants’ transportation barriers.

The curriculum consisted of conflict management, task search and interview abilities, Microsoft Word and Excel, and life skills management, as well as school outing for a robotics bootcamp and trips of technology-based production companies including Kitron and Compass Systems.

The event Friday celebrated the 8 graduates of the program while acknowledging lots more who enrolled, but pulled out after finding work or other more education opportunities along the way.

PHOTO GALLERY|Johnstown Housing Authority Employment & Training Program Graduation

Bernice Sanders (best), of the Coopersdale section of Johnstown, commemorates after getting her Certificate of Completion throughout the Johnstown Housing Authority Employment & Training Program graduation ceremony at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College in Richland Township on Friday, January 31, 2025.

Jeanne Vandergrift (front), of the Dale section of Johnstown, celebrates with graduates after getting her Certificate of Completion throughout the Johnstown Housing Authority Employment & Training Program graduation ceremony at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College in Richland Township on Friday, January 31, 2025.

RJ Montague (right), of Johnstown, employment shakes hands with Johnstown Housing Authority (JHA) Executive Director Mike Alberts (center) while getting their Certificate of Completion during the JHA Employment & Training Program ceremony at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College in Richland Township on Friday, employment January 31, 2025. Looking on, from delegated right, is Pennsylvania Highlands Community College President Steve Nunez and JARI President and CEO Linda Thomson.

Marie Bradford, of the Oakhurst area of Johnstown, celebrates throughout the Johnstown Housing Authority Employment & Training Program graduation ceremony at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College in Richland Township on Friday, January 31, 2025.

Dellia Gonzalez, of the Oakhurst section of Johnstown, with her daughter Dakota Marong, 3, applauds the graduates during the Johnstown Housing Authority Employment & Training Program graduation ceremony at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College in Richland Township on Friday, January 31, 2025.

JARI Workforce Development Director employment Dave Grimaldi praises the individuals finishing the Johnstown Housing Authority Employment & Training Program during a graduation ceremony at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College in Richland Township on Friday, January 31, 2025.

By Thomas Slusser
tslusser@tribdem.com!.?.! JARI Director employment of Workforce Development Dave Grimaldi stated members of the program’s second associate have progressed to more education at Penn Highlands or other location schools for accreditation in fields including HVAC, emergency medicine and cybersecurity. The program is provided at no charge to individuals and finished its first cohort in June. After Friday’s graduation, 2 more accomplices are scheduled, Grimaldi stated. The program was initiated by previous JARI Workforce Development Director Debra Balog and

PA CareerLink Cambria County website administrator Jeff Dick.”This was among the very best concepts we have actually had for finding quality employees for employers in the area,”Balog stated.”We created the idea of dealing with our public housing systems because lots of individuals had transport and child care barriers that kept them from accessing resources outside of Johnstown’s public housing.” U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Pittsburgh Field Office Director Michael Horvath said the program has assisted people”

raise themselves up and get them connected. “He congratulated the graduates and the collaborators who made the program possible. The program has made HUD recognition as a best practice, an acknowledgment offered to one authority yearly for particularly improving the lives of its residents, Alberts said. The graduates got certificates and a standing ovation from family and friends in attendance, along with Cambria County Commissioner Thomas Chernisky, Cambria Regional Chamber of Commerce President Amy Bradley and representatives from U.S. Sen. John Fetterman’s workplace. Fetterman, D-Pa., employment and former U.S. Sen. Bob Casey were critical in promoting the program, JARI President Linda Thomson said.