North Idaho College Workforce Training Center celebrates 30 years

It's been 30 years since North Idaho College's Workforce Training Center opened doors of opportunity to the community.

Over three decades, this extension of the local community college has provided countless hours of training as well as helped local workers fulfill certification requirements and expand their skillsets.

Before the Workforce Training Center existed, local industries struggled to find a skilled workforce, said Colby Matilla, Workforce Training Center executive director of workforce and economic development.

"Employers often had to invest heavily in training new hires or recruit talent from outside the region," Matilla said Thursday. "There was a lack of specialized programs tailored to local industry needs, which limited the potential for economic growth and innovation."

He said the center has become a cornerstone of workforce development, offering targeted training programs that align with the specific needs of local industries such as manufacturing, health care and technology. 

"Industries have become more efficient in filling jobs with well-trained individuals, reducing skill gaps and increasing productivity," he said.

Something that stands out to him is how students who start in the plumbing apprenticeship program at Kootenai Technical Education Campus receive a real advantage when they graduate and move into the Workforce Training Center's apprenticeship programs.

Matilla was the director of KTEC for five years. He saw firsthand the opportunities and seamless transitions that took place for students wishing to augment their skills at the Workforce Training Center.

"KTEC gives them a strong foundation, teaching them the basics of plumbing, safety protocols and hands-on skills they need to get started in the trade," Matilla said.

By the time those students are done at KTEC, they’ve already finished the first year of the apprenticeship, allowing them to be hired on at a higher rate and be one year closer to their journeyman's card, he said. They then have a leg up when they go to the Workforce Training Center, where they won't have to start from scratch.

"They’re able to hit the ground running, focusing on more advanced topics like plumbing codes, specialized systems and even leadership in the workplace," Matilla said. "The additional training at the Workforce Training Center helps them deepen their technical expertise and prepares them for the licensing requirements in the state."

NIC has long offered technical workforce training to fulfill industry needs that require knowledge and experience beyond the traditional classroom. During World War II, then-North Idaho Junior College focused on defense programs, such as shipwright training, first aid, international code and aviation. After the war, it adopted a watchmaking program, then a one-year radio licensing program.

The passage of the Vocational Education Act in 1963 led to the state board of vocational education creating six vocational schools in Idaho, and one was at NIC.

The college continued to add technical workforce training programs such as drafting, welding, machining, millwright and carpentry. By the early 1980s, more staff was needed to run these programs.

In 1994, a new 38,000-square-foot building was constructed at 525 Clearwater Loop in Post Falls with funding from the North Idaho College Foundation. The center opened that October.

NIC Dean of Instruction, Workforce Education Vicki Isakson was the director of the NIC Workforce Training Center from 2019 to 2023. She said she remembers when the ground was broken for the new center.

"A very large company called Harpers —later called Flexcel and then Kimball International — was moving to Post Falls to open a metal commercial furniture manufacturing plant, and the Workforce Training Center was going to assist with training hundreds of workers for that facility," she said. "It was an exciting time! I mainly saw the Workforce Training Center as an answer to the growing need for training in manufacturing in our region."

She said the center experienced its ups and downs throughout the years as the economy fluctuated. It suffered when employers couldn't afford to invest in employee training, she said.

"There were many years that the center operated in a deficit and its future may have been in question, but it has thrived the last several years," Isakson said.

"There is a huge need to upskill employees, and both individuals and employers are investing in training to make this happen," she said. "The state has also contributed greatly to this need by implementing programs like Idaho LAUNCH. The talk around the nation is also focused on short-term workforce training, and the significant benefits of this affordable and flexible option. All of these things have contributed to the success of the center."

The NIC Workforce Training Center will host a 30th anniversary event and open house from 3 to 5 p.m. Monday. The celebration will include a short ceremony with speakers. The public will be invited to tour the building and learn about the many training programs the Workforce Training Center offers.

Info: nic.edu/wtc

    About 40 people listen to Deputy Doug Goodman of the Kootenai County Sheriff's Office as he discusses active shooter training during Safety Fest of the Great Northwest at the Workforce Training Center in Post Falls in 2023.
 

    A photo of the North Idaho College Workforce Training Center groundbreaking ceremony from June 13, 1994. Robert Ketchum, who was the NIC Workforce Training director in 1994, is in the center.
  

    Students at the NIC Workforce Training Center’s Firefighter 1 Academy take part in a training exercise in 2020. The center is turning 30 this month.
  

    The North Idaho College Workforce Training Center in Post Falls will host a 30th anniversary event and open house from 3-5 p.m. Monday.