JUST THE FACTS: 

• The curriculum for the Job Training 

Program was designed by local 

environmental practitioners and the 

academic community. 

• The 194-hour course provides technical 

and safety training that prepares 

students for employment in the waste 

management, private or public 

infrastructure, construction, demolition, 

and environmental consulting and 

contracting industries. 

• The second training course recently 

finished, bringing the total number of 

graduates to 32. 

class received employment in the 

environmental sector within two months 

of graduation, and are earning between 

$8.50 and $16.00 an hour. 

Disadvantaged Liberty Street 

Residents Trained for 

Environmental Jobs 

Winston-Salem, North Carolina 

continued �

Students undergo training in Winston-Salem's 

Brownfields Job Training Program The disadvantaged residents of the Liberty Street Corridor in 

Winston-Salem, North Carolina, are developing technical skills to prepare 

them for increased employment opportunities. 

Brownfields Job Training Pilot recently finished its second training 

course, bringing the total number of graduates to 32. 

class received employment in the environmental sector within two 

months of graduation, and are earning between $8.50 and $16.00 an 

hour. 

and job placement rates. 

Winston-Salem's three-mile Liberty Street Corridor was once home to a 

booming manufacturing center, anchored by R.J. Reynolds, one of the 

world's largest manufacturers of tobacco products. World War 

II era, however, brought expansion to other areas of the city and 

economic decline along the Corridor. 

residents skyrocketed to 83 percent, with 91 percent of residents living in 

poverty. 

Job support services like those provided by the Northwest Piedmont 

Council of Governments Workforce Development Program (WDP) are 

critical to reducing these unemployment rates. 

participants are generally residents of the Liberty Street Corridor and 

surrounding areas who are referred to the WDP by neighborhood 

associations. 

Program's success, as it identifies prospective students, provides life 

skills training, places students in appropriate training programs, and 

assists with job placement. 

The curriculum for the Job Training Program was designed by local 

environmental practitioners and the academic community, including 

advisers from Forsyth Technical Community College (the teaching 

partner in the program), Wake Forest University, and Winston-Salem 

University. 

environmental consultants and contractors also reviewed the curriculum 

and offered suggestions. 

safety training that prepares students for employment in the waste 

management, private or public infrastructure, construction, demolition, 

and environmental and engineering consulting and contracting industries. 

Course work involves approximately 20 hours per week for 10 weeks, 

and includes both classroom and field instruction. 

"For me, I now know there is a 

place for me in this world, and I 

will get a job which will test my 

intelligence and endurance while 

still allowing me to be myself and 

to maintain my integrity." 

—Jody Hudson, graduate of the 

Winston-Salem Brownfields Job 

Training Program 

Sixty percent of the 

EPA's Winston-Salem 

Sixty percent of the 

Program improvements in the second course led to higher retention 

The postThe unemployment rate for local 

Job Training Pilot 

The WDP is an essential component of the Job Training 

Before the second training course, a representative group of 

The 194-hour course provides technical and 
Students getting hands-on experience 

in Winston-Salem's Brownfields Job 

Training Program 

CONTACTS: 

For more information contact 

US EPA - Region 4 (404) 562-8660 

Or visit EPA’s Brownfields Web site at: 

http://www.epa.gov/brownfields/ 

By providing a clear description of the training through orientation sessions and a detailed syllabus, 

the program had a higher retention rate during its second session. 

of the second training course, as compared to seven in the first course. 

job placement increased by expanding relationships with local businesses 

and involving them in the program. 

to employers that contained program background information and 

student biographies; held off-site training events at employer 

facilities; and organized a job fair that enabled businesses to meet 

students face to face. 

coordinator and an instructor, shared his thoughts on the program. 

"I believe in the program strongly," said Binkley. 

and economic implications are enormous in terms of benefits to 

the students and the community at large." 

Jody Hudson is a graduate of the second training class who was 

offered a position at GeoScience and Technology before the course 

ended. 

for area brownfields projects, and has been a major supporter of the 

Job Training Program by offering its facilities and technicians for field 

training. 

place for me in this world, and I will get a job which will test my intelligence and endurance while 

still allowing me to be myself and to maintain my integrity." 

Winston-Salem's Brownfields Job Training Program has proven its success by graduating 32 

students and finding employment for 20 students by the end of its second session. 

continues to improve due to the commitment of the City of Winston-Salem, the Pilot coordinator, 

instructors, the Northwest Piedmont Council of Governments Workforce Development Program, 

and Forsyth Technical Community College. 

Only two students dropped out 

Similarly, 

The Pilot sent monthly newsletters 

Tim Binkley, the Job Training Pilot 

"The sociological 

The company provides assessment and remediation consulting 

Hudson expressed how the training changed her life: "For me, I now know there is a 

The program 

Brownfields Success Story Solid Waste EPA 560-F-04-002 

Winston-Salem, North Carolina and Emergency March 2004 

Response (5105T) www.epa.gov/brownfields/