A new $4.1 million job training center will be added to the San Bernardino Community College District in the next four years.
The district received a $3 million grant from the U.S. Economic Development Administration last month to build the 17,620-square-foot facility at a district site on Del Rosa Drive in San Bernardino. It will join other job training programs in the area that used to be Norton Air Force Base.
The building is set to open in 2028 and will have indoor and outdoor training spaces for industry jobs such as manufacturing, construction, office skills, forklift operation, heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems, tree care, and management of trees in urban spaces such as near power lines.
“We started really building a larger infrastructure with the goal of enhancing and building for those who are ready to go into the workforce, which is what this grant is really designed for,” Nohemy Ornelas, vice chancellor of educational and student support services said Wednesday, Sept. 4.
The center will be an extension of job training programs the district already offers at the site, she said. The district received a $3 million grant in 2019 to rehabilitate two buildings at the location to serve as centers for the institution’s reentry and transitional employment and workforce training programs. The rehabbed buildings opened in 2021.
The new facility will serve as an educational and training site, Ornelas said. It will allow students to train for jobs and continue their education through programs connected to the district’s two college campuses, Crafton Hills College in Yucaipa and San Bernardino Valley College.
“So that integrated approach will really help us, and we’ve already started laying that foundation with the colleges and with our program,” Ornelas said. “So this grant is really just going to help us enhance and offer what we can’t in the limited space that we have at our site right now.”
As part of the grant, the district has partnered with industries and employers to assess their needs and will adjust the program accordingly. For example, if there is a desire to increase medical training programs the district would offer those classes or programs.
The current job training facilities see roughly 2,000 students a year. The new building is expected to create 500 new jobs Ornelas, said.
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The district held a late July groundbreaking with local and state officials including U.S. Department of Commerce Assistant Secretary Alejandra Castillo; Rep. Pete Aguilar, D-San Bernardino; Assemblymember Eloise Gomez Reyes, D-Colton; San Bernardino County Supervisor Joe Baca Jr.; San Bernardino Mayor Helen Tran; and San Bernardino City Councilmember Damon Alexander.
“By fostering nearly 500 new jobs and retaining over 800 more, this center will serve as a financial impact multiplier, enhancing the quality of life and future economic stability for the Inland Empire,” state Sen. Rosilicie Ochoa Bogh, R-Yucaipa, said in a Wednesday, Aug. 28, news release.
“This grant will fund an advanced facility allow our community to engage in career opportunities, thereby ensuring a well-trained workforce able to sustain and grow thriving neighborhoods in our region,” Assemblymember James Ramos, D-Highland, said in the release.
“This center is all about opportunity,” said Nosakhere Thomas, executive director of the Inland Empire Black Worker Center. “It’s about providing training for members of the BIPOC community, women, low-income, and justice-impacted individuals who are ready to turn their lives around.”
