Texas Border Business
BROWNSVILLE, Texas – The Industrial Scaffolding program at Texas Southmost College is providing the skills training needed to provide not only jobs, but a career in an in-demand field.
More than 500 scaffold builders will be needed in the Rio Grande Valley in the next few years, and Dylan Veach is proof that completing TSC’s scaffold program and earning a certificate of completion can lead to worthwhile opportunities.
The 21-year-old was recruited and immediately hired by BrandSafway as a scaffold helper after he successfully completed the program, and recently earned a promotion and raise. He is now a carpenter.
“I was in a rough patch in my life when I decided to enroll in this program,” said the Weslaco native. “I was laid off of two jobs and had a family to support. I needed something quick.”
He added that the two weeks it took him to complete the program turned his life around and he is grateful to TSC and BrandSafway for a brighter future.
“I am so thankful for the opportunities I now have thanks to the scaffolding program and I consider myself fortunate to have found a job right away,” said Veach. “I have a career and I’m able to support my family – I’m in a better place.”
TSC Industrial Scaffolding is an 80-hour training program that prepares students for entry-level positions as scaffold builders and for the Industrial Scaffolding Committee national certification exam.
Students in the program get the training needed to fill the skills gap in the industry. They learn how to identify, inspect, erect, dismantle, rack and stack the most common industrial scaffolding systems.
Joseph Fleishman, associate vice president of Workforce Development, said the program and its students have seen great success.
“Our scaffolding program has a 100% national certification pass rate and job placement rate,” said Fleishman. “So imagine, completing a program within a short time frame and immediately finding a job. That’s our goal here at TSC’s Workforce Training division.”
Fleishman added that the scaffolding program has seen a high job placement rate thanks to a partnership with BrandSafway, a leading global provider of specialized services such as scaffolding for industrial, commercial and infrastructure markets, that has hired 100% of the program’s graduates since its inception.
BrandSafway Senior Manager of Craft Development Robert Bell said TSC has been crucial in helping the company meet workforce needs in its scaffolding department.
“We’ve been able to keep up with employment demands in our scaffolding area since partnering with TSC,” said Bell. “We have a great partner in the college, and this is a testament of what we can achieve together.”
