Putnamville Correctional celebrates building trades grads

Putnamville Building Trades graduates pose with instructor Bergson (front, right) and educational director Jim Hendrix (back, right).

Courtesy photo

PUTNAMVILLE -- The Putnamville Correctional Facility has announced the certification of 15 offenders with the OSHA 10 certification and National Center for Construction Education and Research (NCCER).

Recently, the Indiana Department of Correction (IDOC) celebrated the graduation of 15 male offenders who earned their NCCER and OSHA 10 certifications while incarcerated.

Each offender must complete 400 hours of classroom and hands-on study, plus an additional 10 hours for OSHA.

After each offender graduates and is released from incarceration, he can choose to continue into the NCCER Carpentry 2, and be placed immediately in a job or continue studies to specialize in the following: maritime, safety, green/sustainable construction, energy, pipeline, management safety and supplemental titles.

Currently, Indiana correctional facilities house approximately 27,000 individuals and more than 90 percent will eventually be released back into their communities.

After the completion of the Building Trades program, Deputy Warden of Re-Entry Timmy Phegley said, “This is another step in the right direction for these offenders. We all face hardships in one form or another, as well as success and failures. Each offender made the choice to work on setting their future up for success.”

Instructor of Building Trades Ms. Bergson stated, “The incarcerated individuals that graduated have laid the foundation for their future and now hold the key to unlock many doors in this career field.”