For immediate release
April 30, 2007
Contact Emily Ray
Public Relations Coordinator
(270) 824-8581
Emily.Ray@kctcs.edu
http://www.madisonville.kctcs.edu
Muhlenberg County Schools Start
Kentucky Junior Coal Academy
GREENVILLE, Ky.--Muhlenberg County School District will begin the first Kentucky Junior Coal Academy in western Kentucky this fall.
The program is a collaboration of the Muhlenberg County Board of Education, staff at the central office, principals and counselors at the Muhlenberg County high schools, and partners at the Muhlenberg Area Technology Center, Madisonville Community College, the Kentucky Coal Academy, and the coal mining industry.
'“This is an exciting new program for our high school students who are interested in a career in the coal industry,” said Dale Todd, Muhlenberg County School Superintendent.
The Kentucky Junior Coal Academy began in eastern Kentucky at Lawrence County High School. Last year, Madisonville Community College, representatives from the Kentucky Community and Technical College System (KCTCS) Kentucky Coal Academy, and representatives from Lawrence County High School held a meeting for local school districts interested in Junior Coal Academy.
Following the meeting, Randy McCarty, principal at Muhlenberg South High School, recognized the potential of the program for Muhlenberg students.
'“This program should provide our students an avenue for moving seamlessly into well-paid jobs in the reviving area coal industry, into the mining program at Madisonville Community College, or into mining engineering programs at Murray State University or the University of Kentucky,” said McCarty.
Since that meeting, McCarty worked closely with Mark Eades, principal at Muhlenberg North High School, Todd, and Cassandra Webb at Lawrence County, the founder of the Kentucky Junior Coal Academy to develop and implement the Muhlenberg County Junior Coal Academy program.
Eades echoes the potential career path that the program offers. “We know that the average age of current coal miners is about 48, so many of them are nearing retirement. With the price of oil increasing, there are strong reasons to believe that coal production should increase, including production in this area,” he said. “With this demand, a starting coal miner might expect to make as much as $40,000-50,000 per year plus benefits.”
One of the principal attributes of the program is that students who complete the program will have met all their training requirements for employment in the mines.
Students wishing to register in the program will need to apply this spring. They should have at least a 2.3 GPA or they can apply for admission to the program through a screening committee that will be established for the program. Strong attendance records and parental permission for voluntary drug testing will also be part of the application process. Students interested in the program should contact their high school guidance counselors for additional information.
Students accepted in the program will be expected to take several new coal mining and coal-related courses at the Muhlenberg Area Technology Center.
'“We are excited about this partnership,” said Andy Swansey, Muhlenberg ATC Principal. “Our electricity and industrial maintenance programs are great complements to the Kentucky Junior Coal Academy and should provide great training for prospective coal miners.”
Each student in the program also will spend at least nine hours on the mining equipment simulators on the MCC Technical Campus.
Between now and the fall, a number of challenges remain. The purchase of equipment is one of them. The school district is putting out inquiries to potential funding sources for computerized simulators that are quite expensive.
The Muhlenberg County Board of Education earlier this year approved the program and authorized the hiring of an instructor. The Board of Education is currently searching for a qualified person who must have a mine foreman certificate and should have 10 years of mine experience. Persons interested in applying should contact Robert Reynolds at the Muhlenberg County Board of Education at (270) 338-2871.
MCC is an equal opportunity and education institution