SONOMA COUNTY, Calif. – The North Bay Construction Corps, or NBCC, a construction exploration and training program for local high school seniors in their last semester of high school, is now accepting applications for the 2019 Corps.

A new chapter of the NBCC will take place in Lake County in Kelseyville.

Launched in 2017, the NBCC is a partnership of the North Coast Builders Exchange, the Career Technical Foundation Sonoma County, the Sonoma County Office of Education and Santa Rosa Junior College designed to address the growing need for new construction workers.

Construction Corps members meet once a week for two hours and one Saturday a month for five hours over a 14-week period from late January through mid-May.

Basic construction skills are taught by local contractors and other construction professionals and safety is emphasized at every meeting.

Students earn industry-recognized certifications such as CPR/first aid, forklift and boom lift certification, personal protective equipment, ladder safety and more.

Successful Corps members are invited to attend a two-week boot camp in June where students work full-time on a real construction project.

Graduates who complete the NBCC program are prepared to work in an entry-level position where they can be trained further by the company that hires them.

Successful students earn three college credits for work experience from their local community college that are transferable to a California State University. They also receive a $750 stipend for their boot camp work and a letter of recommendation.

An interview event is held on the last day of boot camp and construction industry participants have the opportunity to highlight the benefits of working for their organization to these potential employees.

In its third year, NBCC is expanding. The program’s goal this year is to graduate 125 students or more in a five-county region including Sonoma, Mendocino, Lake, Napa and Marin.

Students or building industry professionals interested in getting involved in the Construction Corps should visit the NBCC Web site for more information and a student application: www.constructioncorps.org.