LAUNCH Career Center hosts grand opening celebration

FLORENCE, Ala. — Thanks to a partnership between Florence City Schools and Lockheed Martin, Florence High School students will soar to new heights through several work-based learning programs at the newly built LAUNCH Career Center.

Florence City Schools and Lockheed Martin hosted a grand opening ceremony at the career center in January. The collaborative space, located off Highway 72, will house work-based learning programs supported by business and industry partnerships.

The first program to utilize the space is Lockheed Martin's Manufacturing Basic Skills Plus pre-apprenticeship.

"That's going to be an electrical technician manufacturing dynamic aligning with Lockheed Martin," FCS Career, Technical, and Specialized Education Director Dr. Corey Behel said. "What we want to do is partner with business industry—train students to do an electrical engineering technician-type role."

Behel said the goal is to eventually hire the program's selected students for full-time employment with Lockheed Martin.

For students like William Christian, the pre-apprenticeship provides a clear path for the future.

"We're supposed to get the training, and then, if we do well enough, we get a job offer directly from Lockheed," Christian said. "If we want to, they'll pay up to $72,000 in tuition for wherever we want to go."

It's a sentiment that William's mother, Janina Trzmiel, fully supports.

"I don't think I can put into words how excited and proud I am," Trzmiel said. "I feel truly blessed that Florence City Schools has this program in partnership with Lockheed Martin, and that they're setting these children up for success to provide a more clear path to their future."

Behel added that the partnerships won't stop with Lockheed Martin.

"We've got partnerships with TASUS, Bigbee Steel, Optimal Health, Turbo Coffee, manufacturing, engineering, industrial, medical—just a wide range of things, and that's only to start," Behel said. "Once these systems get built, they're going to expand, and I think people are going to see we're producing fruit."

And producing long-term potential as students transition from high school to careers.

By Jeremy Jackson