Students participating in the Surry-Yadkin Works program include, from the left, top row, Katie Kellam of Elkin High School, Jenny Cortes of Mount Airy High School, Natalie Evans and Raydan Hawks; second row, Carlos Salmeron do Monte Airy; East Surry High School students Ripley Cottrell, Hailey Flynn, Victor Hall; third row, Cassidy Hewitt, Chloe Hunter, Tynlee Jones, Julie Marshall and, bottom row, Brianna Whitaker.
Photo uploaded
DOBSON – Surry-Yadkin Works, the first such community internship program in North Carolina covering a region of two counties, is taking a virtual kick-off on Tuesday, March 9, at 11 am for anyone who wants to know more about this business and educational initiative.
To join the virtual meeting, type bit.ly/SYWKickoff in your web browser to join the video conference. You may need to download the Microsoft Teams application quickly before joining the meeting.
Crystal Folger-Hawks, director of the Surry-Yadkin Works program, will give an overview of the program followed by presentations by students from Katie Kellam, Elkin High School, certified nursing assistant at North Regional Hospital; Trevor Moxley, Starmount High School, maintenance intern at Unifi; Chloe Hunter, East Surry High School, e-commerce intern at Leonard USA; and Carlos Salmeron, Mount Airy High School, construction intern at Smith-Rowe LLC.
Business partners will share their experience with Surry-Yadkin Works, including Smith “Smitty” Williams, HR manager at Unifi and Chris Lumsden, president and chief executive officer of Northern Regional Hospital. Cecilia Holden, president and CEO of myFutureNC, a statewide nonprofit organization focused on educational achievement, will also be a featured speaker.
Surry-Yadkin Works began work with 50 students being placed on internships for the spring 2021 semester. The program is the collaborative effort of four public school systems in Surry and Yadkin counties, including Elkin City Schools, Mount Airy City Schools , Surry County Schools and Yadkin County Schools, as well as Surry Community College, to create a unique approach to a regional school internship program.
Funding is also a joint effort with the commitments of Surry County Commissioners and Yadkin County Commissioners. An anonymous contributor donated $ 100,000 due to a presentation about the program at an educational meeting. The Surry-Yadkin Works officially started on January 1st.
The first registered apprentice program for registered nurses in North Carolina began with 13 interns from Surry-Yadkin Works, who started working as employees at the Northern Regional Hospital in January. Twelve students were hired as certified nursing assistants and one is a patient care technician.
Students are: Laney Cave, Carrie McKeaver and Ashley Sewell of Surry Central High School; Jenny Cortes and Natalie Evans, of Mount Airy High School; Tynlee Jones and Julie Marshall, of East Surry High School; Katie Kellam, from Elkin High School; Eryn O’Neal and Annsley Puckett, of North Surry High School; Emily Santiago Orellana, from Surry Early College High School; Anna Serrano, from Starmount High School; and Reagan Wooten of Forbush High School.
This opportunity is part of the US Department of Labor’s Learning program and the state’s ApprenticeshipNC program through the NC Community College System Office, which combines a paid work-based learning experience with academics in the classroom, leading to a certification national. These students have the opportunity to earn free tuition for the Associate Degree Nursing program through Surry Community College, which allows students to become registered nurses.
Another 37 interns from Surry-Yadkin Works are working for companies and organizations in Surry and Yadkin counties. These students, along with their schools, workplaces and positions are as follows:
Mount airy high School: Raydan Hawks, Chatham Nursing & Rehabilitation, certified nursing assistant intern (CNA) and Carlos Salmeron, Smith-Rowe LLC, member of the gardening team.
North Surry High School: Luke Wagoner, Cedar Ridge Elementary, intern in custody; Chris Parker, Vega Construction Company, project management intern; Emma Crouse and Emily Johnson, Chatham Nursing and Rehabilitation, interns at CNA; Weatherly Reeves, Interlam Design, social media marketing intern; Megan Angel and Cainan Dollyhigh, operators of Johnson Granite AutoCAD; Caleb Doss, Johnson Granite, intern at the manufacturer; Mackenzie Yoder, Leonard USA, installation intern; and Leah Cain and Azeneth Espinosa, Surry County schools, CNA interns.
East Surry High School: Ripley Cottrell, Shoals Elementary School, custody intern; Chloe Hunter and Brianna Whitaker, Leonard USA, e-commerce interns; Hailey Flynn and Cassidy Hewitt, Surry County schools, CNA interns; and Victor Hall, Dobson Elementary, a custody intern.
Surry Central High School: Morgan Dawson, Chatham Nursing and Rehabilitation, CNA intern; Peggy Prevette, Shepherd’s House, intern in the education program; Carter Jones, intern at Surry Communications, Supply & Storage; and Tiffany Payne, Surry County Schools, CNA intern;
Surry Early College High School: Anahi Nunez, Altec, office intern; Estefania Camacho, Chatham Nursing and Rehabilitation, intern CNA; Matthew Gillespie, Interlam Design, CNC programmer; Leslie Nguygen, REF Properties, assistant accounting / office; Jesus Nava, Tampco, machine intern; and Leshawn Phillips, Workforce Unlimited, IT intern.
In addition, other students from Forbush and Starmount High Schools and Yadkin Early College High School are participating.
Students started their internships on January 11th and will work until May 14th. They will receive credit for high school or college for their job, along with a monthly stipend for travel expenses.
For more information about the program or the virtual start event, contact Crystal Folger-Hawks at 336-401-7820 or [email protected] or visit www.surryyadkinworks.org. you can follow Surry-Yadkin Works on Facebook and Instagram @surryyadkinworks and on Twitter @SurYadWorks.