The California High-Speed Rail Authority (CHSRA) recognized 14 students who completed the Central Valley Training Center’s 12-week, pre-apprenticeship program in Selma, Calif. Since the start of the training center in 2020, 123 students have graduated, with more than 1,000 inquiring about the program.
The pre-apprenticeship training program is aimed at serving veterans, at-risk young adults, minority and low-income populations in the Central Valley. The no-cost program provides hands-on construction industry training for those looking to work on the nation’s first high-speed rail project.
“This cohort of students showed a tenacity and eagerness to learn about the trades from the moment they walked into the training center,” said Chuck Riojas of the Fresno, Madera, Tulare, Kings Build Trades Council. “Our goal with every cohort is to have these students ready and better prepared to enter the workforce and construction trade of their choice.”
At the Central Valley Training Center, students are exposed to more than 10 different construction trades and exit the program with more than a dozen industry-specific certifications. After graduation, the training center assists with job placement, including coordination with the high-speed rail project and its contractors.
The Central Valley Training Center is a project of the California High-Speed Rail Authority in partnership with the city of Selma, Fresno Economic Development Corporation, the Fresno, Madera, Kings, Tulare Building Trades Council and the Fresno Economic Opportunities Commission.
The authority has begun work to extend the 119 miles under construction to 171 miles of future electrified high-speed rail from Merced to Bakersfield. To date, more than 10,000 construction jobs have been created since the start of the project, with a majority of those going to residents of the Central Valley. There are more than 30 active construction sites in California’s Central Valley, with the authority having environmentally cleared 422 miles of the high-speed rail program from the Bay Area to the Los Angeles Basin.
