Lincoln Educational Services Corporation (NASDAQ: LINC), marking 75
years in 2021 as a national leader in specialized technical
training, has announced that the first class of Food Industry
Technician (FIT) program graduates are finding success in new
careers with food processing employers across the country. Nearly
all graduates of the program, offered exclusively at Lincoln Tech’s
Indianapolis campus, are now employed in the field.
“This has been a tremendously successful start to our
collaboration with the Food Processing Suppliers Association
(FPSA),” says Scott Shaw, Lincoln Tech’s President and CEO. “When
the partnership was formalized in the fall of 2019, the goal was to
help as many students as possible enter the workforce of an
industry that plays a crucial role in food production worldwide.
Our FPSA partners were ready to support our students with equipment
and an industry-specific curriculum, and in turn Lincoln Tech is
providing them with a new generation of skilled service and
maintenance technicians.”
Acceptance into the 12-week FIT training program was contingent
upon graduates of Lincoln Tech’s Electrical and Electronic Systems
Technology (EEST) programs successfully completing an application
process that included meeting GPA and attendance requirements,
submitting instructor recommendations, and passing a 40-question
technical assessment. Students who met all of the criteria were
then interviewed by the CEO of the FPSA before an acceptance
decision was made. Graduates of the FIT program qualified for
entry-level positions at the more than 400 member organizations of
the FPSA.
“These careers are recession-proof, because no matter what’s
going on in the world, people still need to eat,” says Keston
Edwards, Manager of Partner Accounts at Lincoln Tech. “It’s an
industry that’s continuing to grow, with industry equipment
becoming more automated and technologically advanced, and veteran
technicians nearing retirement. Industry employers are working hard
to identify new candidates with very specific electrical and
mechanical skills to fill current and future job openings.”
“There’s a dire need for technicians in the food processing
industry,” he adds. “Our employer partners in FPSA are providing a
lot of support for the FIT program.”
Those employers include many industry leaders such as
Smithfield, Weber, Poly-clip, Provisur, JBS, Handtmann, and West
Liberty Foods – where Lincoln Tech graduate Chris Osias now enjoys
a thriving career. Working as a Maintenance Technician, Osias
performs troubleshooting, repairs, and routine maintenance on
critical pieces of equipment that produce foods for companies like
Walmart and Subway.
“I grew up watching my father, a mechanic, earn a living working
with his hands,” he says. “He taught me a lot and I always had an
interest in mechanical repair. I started out thinking about
becoming an electrician, but when I learned about the FIT program
and the opportunities in the food processing industry, it really
caught my interest.”
Osias completed the EEST training program at Lincoln Tech’s
Union, NJ campus before applying for the FIT program. Once
accepted, he moved to Indianapolis for training and was hired by
West Liberty to work in their Chicago branch. “I’d never been to
Indianapolis or Chicago before,” he says. “I’ve lived in Chicago
now for the past 7 months, and it’s been an amazing
experience.”
For FIT program graduates, that kind of experience can be life
changing. So too can the compensation: graduates can be hired at
salaries above those typically projected for entry-level
electronics technicians, and hiring packages often include full
benefits. Many employers also include perks such as signing
bonuses, reimbursements for relocation costs, and apartment search
assistance.
The positions often come with relocation and travel
expectations: 70-80% of a service technician’s time, Edwards notes,
will be spent traveling to perform service duties at various plants
across the country. Lincoln Tech graduates have so far been hired
by employers in California, Texas, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio,
Indiana, Illinois, and New Jersey. Osias cites the opportunity to
travel as part of the draw.
“I was born in Haiti and moved to New Jersey as a child,” he
says. “Getting to move to new places, first for training and then
for a job, was exciting to me. I love to travel so this kind of
career is ideal for me.”
More than 820,000 Electricians and Electronic Systems
Technicians will be needed around the country by 2029, according
the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics. Much of
that need will be concentrated in the food processing industry.
“There’s tremendous potential for growth in this field,” Edwards
says. “You have to have grit and passion, and a ‘whatever it takes’
mentality. Each student that has attended the FIT Program possess
these traits, and have positioned themselves to reach their goals
not only in their careers, but in life.”
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About Lincoln Educational Services Corporation
Lincoln Educational Services Corporation is a leading provider
of diversified career-oriented post-secondary education. Lincoln
offers recent high school graduates and working adults
career-oriented programs in five principal areas of study:
automotive technology, health sciences, skilled trades, business
and information technology, and hospitality services. Lincoln has
provided the workforce with skilled technicians since its inception
in 1946.
Lincoln currently operates 22 campuses in 14 states under four
brands: Lincoln Technical Institute, Lincoln College of Technology
and Euphoria Institute of Beauty Arts and Sciences. Lincoln
also operates Lincoln Culinary Institutes in both Maryland and
Connecticut.
For more information, go to lincolntech.edu.
Peter Tahinos
Lincoln Educational Services
973-766-9656
PTahinos@lincolntech.edu
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