Ex-offender gains job and life skills that change her view of the present and her prospects for the future.
Then: A teenage mom with her first felony conviction at age 18, addicted to drugs and incarcerated numerous times. Gina eventually got connected with the CareerTech Skills Center at Eddie Warrior Correctional Center, where she enrolled in the manufacturing, distribution and logistics program. She says the Skills Center staff turned her life around by encouraging her to take advantage of character improvement classes and gain practical job skills.
At Eddie Warrior, Gina learned
- Basic computer skills that have helped her in her jobs and job searches.
- Budgeting skills that helped her buy her first house (with cash) and make a down payment on a second one.
- The benefits of "being nice and keeping a positive attitude."
Now: A welding and coatings inspector for a gas and electric company, working on a natural gas pipeline and making $69 an hour plus expenses. In addition to certification in manufacturing, distribution and logistics, she has received certified welding inspector credentials and is certified by NACE International.
After being told all of her life that she was a dummy, Gina was surprised to learn that she was not. Her instructors helped her prepare for her WorkKeys exams, and Gina said, “They saw some intellectual potential that I didn’t even know I had.”
