EITC aims to strengthen eastern Idaho workforce
It’s all about growing eastern Idaho’s workforce. EITC is collaborating with more local businesses to provide local internships, and some of those experiences have led to job offers.
“I’m just really thankful for everything they’ve done for me and things like that,” said Patty Trejo.
It’s tears of joy. Patty Trejo is one semester away from being an EITC graduate and already she has a job lined up after college. But it wasn’t always an easy road for Trejo.
“I had been working for a company for six years that laid off a lot of people,” said Trejo.
And being a wife and a mother of three small children — Trejo knew she had to provide for her family. So she chose to go back to school at EITC. But she never realized going back to school would benefit her as much as it has.
“My instructor Leslie Jernberg said there was an internship available and I let her know it was the perfect time for me to be able to do it,” said Trejo.
Jernberg says that internships are available for all students at EITC.
“We try to set up partnerships with people in business where they can have the opportunity to take the student into an internship type program,” said Jernberg.
INL, US Bank, Grow Idaho Galls are just some of the businesses ready to take EITC students under their wings.
“They start to understand that yes, they can stay right here in Idaho, right here where your family is and you can be apart of this community and help this community grow,” said Jernberg.
Trejo interned with Grow Idaho Falls.
“I was able to start right away, and everything I learned at EITC I was able to use at grow,” said Trejo.
A couple months down the road it led to a part-time job.
And from the skills she learned at Grow Idaho Falls. Trejo will be working for Volm companies after graduation as a purchasing assistant.
“So thankful for everything that they’ve done for me,” said Trejo.
All of EITC programs are designed to train students for jobs that exist in eastern Idaho. If a program no longer relates to a job, they will cut the program immediately.
According to the National Association of Colleges and Employers, six in 10 internships lead to jobs.
