The Inter-Mountain photo by Edgar Kelley Dave McCoy, left, an instructor with the Randolph WORC program, paints crosswalk lines along with his student Darnell McBride Monday morning on Third Street in Elkins. Those taking part in the WORC Construction classes are volunteering to help the City of Elkins with beautification work.

The Inter-Mountain photo by Edgar Kelley
Dave McCoy, left, an instructor with the Randolph WORC program, paints crosswalk lines along with his student Darnell McBride Monday morning on Third Street in Elkins. Those taking part in the WORC Construction classes are volunteering to help the City of Elkins with beautification work.

ELKINS — Students taking part in the Randolph WORC Construction classes are not only getting a hands-on approach to a different set of skills, but also obtaining a sense of community involvement by volunteering to help beautify some areas in downtown Elkins.

“We do volunteer work and when the city asked us to help with what they are working on downtown, we told them that we would definitely do it,” said Matthew Hedrick, job coach at Randolph WORC. “This lets our students get out in public and gives them the feeling of doing something good for the community. It also shows all of the potential employers out there that these guys are here to work. And it lets them learn some different skills from the guys from the city along the way.”

The students from WORC are currently helping the City of Elkins paint crosswalks and parking spaces on Third Street. They will make their way around to other downtown locations in the coming days.

The WORC learning center, which is located in the back of the Tip Top Coffee Shop on Third Street, focuses on the needs of employers and job seekers in Randolph County. It focuses on the top three growth industries, which are Health Care Service, Wood Product Manufacturing and Construction.

The center will be holding a pair of information sessions beginning today from 10 a.m. until noon. The second information session will be July 1 from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.

“We’ve been having so many people call and asking what they need to bring in to enroll in the programs and everything, so we’re having those two open information sessions,” Hedrick said. “That way they can find out what they need, what the programs consist of, and just general information about WORC.”

Other one-day sessions coming up at WORC include a Gain Financial Freedom Class (July 7 from Noon – 2 p.m.)-, a Conflict Resolution Course (July 12, 1 p.m. – 3 p.m.), and a How to be a Good Tenant Course (July 19, 3 p.m. – 5 p.m.).

The Financial Freedom Class will help people learn how to get out of debt and manage their money. The conflict course helps people learn how to deal with workplace conflicts and what to do in those circumstances.

The tenant class teaches people on how to become good tenants and how to meet the expectations of landlords.

For those interested in long-term classes, there are currently openings for the Construction Class that is ongoing. New classes set to begin at Randolph WORC include a Medical Technology class in August, and a Wood Technology program in September.

“We try to fit people into the best jobs and training we can, and we’ve had some success getting some people hired, which is always a plus,” Hedrick said. “We just want to help people better themselves.”