EMCC RECEIVES INNOVATIVE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR GRANT TO START FINE WOODWORKING AND CABINET PROGRAM

Bangor, Maine - Pamela Proulx-Curry, Academic Dean of Eastern Maine Community College, is pleased to announce the new Department of Labor (DOL) funded Fine Woodworking and Cabinet making program at EMCC. Proulx-Curry added, “EMCC is very excited about this new partnership. The DOL grant gives us the ability to expand the current Building Construction program to include a concentration in Fine Woodworking which will be a big asset to students looking for work after graduation. ” This workforce solution was funded by a grant awarded by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration. The program also forms a partnership with The Hinckley Company and is set to begin this fall with 18 seats available for returning and new students.

The DOL grant will help to fund a full-time faculty position for the program and will provide students with the skills necessary to plan and complete cabinetry, furniture and millwork projects. Students will learn to work with prints, specifications and shop drawings, with emphasis placed on selecting proper materials, determining the best procedures, manufacturing parts to specification, assembling, and finishing individual projects.

The Hinckley Company is in a period of growth and is expected to hire an additional 50 employees this year, making them them an excellent partner for the new hands-on program at the College. Andy Fitzpatrick, Plant Manager at the Trenton location noted, “With continued program development incorporating marine carpentry skills like veneering, CNC routing, and varnishing/finishing, we anticipate this program has the capacity to be a strong feeder/training school for all of Maine’s boat builders. This is an age-old industry very special to Maine. To have a technical college[like EMCC] that can keep up with carpentry/boat building advancements, and continually supply marine and other specialty construction tradespeople is  exciting!” The Trenton facility is already home to a dozen EMCC alumni from the school’s early days when it was known as Eastern Maine Vocation Technical School over twenty years ago.

The Fall 2012 semester will kick off the College’s inaugural Fine Woodworking and Cabinet Making classes. EMCC is currently accepting applications to the program. For more information or to apply, log on to www.emcc.edu/academics/programs-of-study/woodworking or contact Liz Russell, director of admissions, at (207) 974-4684 or email lrussell@emcc.edu.