Focused on building the local workforce and streamlining the education process through real world learning, the Hope, Opportunity, Prosperity through Education Program at Fayetteville Technical Community College (FTCC), also known as H.O.P.E., was created to help everyone in the greater Fayetteville area. 

The program provides focuses on the healthcare and trade industries ranging from structural welding to building construction technology to electrical linework and even a full restaurant experience run collaboratively by students in FTCC’s Food & Beverage Service and Contemporary Cuisines course. 

The program’s latest venture in hospitality is aiming to help individuals seeking employment opportunities in the hotel and hospitality industry said FTCC’s Dean of Business Kelly Gold. 

“The program is about advancing people who are either underemployed or unemployed, and don't have a college degree, but they are seeking education to better their lives and improve their skills,” Gold said. “It provides training that leads to industry recognized credentials, making people more marketable in the workforce.”

These credentials, earned through hands-on learning, pave the path to the eventual capstone of the program, participating in a paid internship with a partnered hotel, which Gold noted can help applicants advance educationally and financially. 

H.O.P.E. partners with employers to provide students with work-based learning internships and on-the-job training experiences. The program’s funding, including $2 million in American Rescue Plan funds provided through Cumberland County, helps provide cost-of-living stipends to participating students during the initial training and internship experiences. 

Participants receive technical instruction and on-the-job training, taking advantage of an “earn-as-you-learn” model to get into the workforce through an accelerated path to employment. After completion of the internship, students are eligible for employment with businesses participating in the on-the-job program.

“The H.O.P.E Hospitality Program is specifically tailored for hoteliers in Cumberland County,” Gold said. “The intent of the program and the training is to provide people that have not worked in the hospitality industry, or are at the very beginning stages of discovering their interest in the industry, or they’ve simply just started their journey [with training].”

Participants in the program receive several important credentials like the vital ServSafe certification, Gold said. ServSafe is a food safety certification program offered by the National Restaurant Association. This credential provides training and certification in food safety practices to prevent foodborne illnesses, according to the ServSafe website.

ServSafe covers various roles, including food handlers, managers, alcohol servers and allergen awareness, offering online and classroom training options.

Another certification applicants can earn through the program is CPR. “That is part of general first aid, which is recommended for all hotel employees to know,” Gold said. “Then we teach the concepts of customer service, guest service management, front desk, procedures and conflict resolution.”

The course would last around 180 hours, with up to 60 of those being real-world experience, Gold said.

The program also encourages and helps students gain other skills like resume building. 

“We get hundreds of applications for positions, right? What makes you stand out? What makes you better?” Gold said. “When people are looking to hire, they’re trying to find added value for their business. You’ve got to present your resume in a way that the added value shows through. My goal is always that any student coming out of any of our programs can make an immediate positive impact on that employer.”

Programs like H.O.P.E., Gold said, aim to fill important workforce gaps in Cumberland County. 

“We just have so much to offer here,” she said. “These programs are meant to specifically fill the gaps that employers need to be better prepared, and to have better customer service and better employees. All of that at a faster pace than it would take people getting degrees. We met with the hotels to ask them ‘What types of skill gaps are you seeing that we need to work on?’ This is what they came up with.”

The H.O.P.E. program is free for applicants. There is no set start date for the hotelier component of H.O.P.E., but Gold said it should kick off by the beginning of June depending on community interest. 

“I started in this industry, you can do extremely well and make a very good living,” Gold said. “You can get promoted based on work ethic and the service skills. There are not a lot of limitations if you work hard.” 

Gold also noted service industry skills are easily applicable in other areas and other industries.

“You can take this anywhere,” Gold remarked. “These skills for this program, you can go anywhere you want to. There are just endless possibilities with this. When something is at no cost, why not invest in yourself?”

See the latest class schedule and learn more about FTCC’S H.O.P.E program, online at www.faytechcc.edu/h-o-p-e-re-connect.