Mississippi's top-notch community college system and the Office of Vocational-Technical and Adult Education assists industry in developing valuable, customized training programs. New and expanding businesses receive full cooperation and assistance from basic skills training to the most advanced robotic training. This training is tailored to serve the needs of each individual industry at little or no cost to the company.

The training is delivered through the State's community college and high school vocational centers. Industrial Training Coordinators in the community college districts assist new and expanding industry in the new employee recruiting efforts, coordinate training programs with the employer, and train applicants to meet standards set by the employer. Training can be implemented in the school's facilities using state furnished equipment, if available, or on the plant site using the industry's equipment and material.

How Start-up Training Works

Design Your Program:
Once you make a decision to locate or expand a plant in Oktibbeha County, an industrial training team will consult with you. They assist in determining your employee needs, job requirements, and start-up schedule.

Set Up Training Facilities:
Training facilities are then set up in either a vocational-technical center (East Mississippi Community College or Millsaps Vocational Center), a mobile unit, or at a plant site. Facilities used will be equipped with machinery agreeable to the company. Access to modern technology and equipment is available through the entire network of state vocational-technical centers.

Recruit Prospective Employees:
The Mississippi Industrial Training office will recruit and pay competent-qualified instructors to conduct the requested training, and company personnel may be hired to teach highly specialized skills. The vocational-technical centers and Mississippi Employment Service office will recruit, test, and screen prospective employees according to the company's specifications. Trainees attend sessions on their own and receive no compensation from the company.

Train to Specifications:
A two-phase training sequence of instruction and on-the-job training is usually recommended. Pre-employment instruction at the training facility or plant site gives company approved applicants a predetermined proficiency so they can move directly onto the newly set up production line for on-the-job training. It also provides a proving ground for pre-screening and selection of prospective employees.