More than 35 Community College Students Receive Scholarships to Pursue Chemical Industry Careers

 In TGCCCC News
  • Community College Petrochemical Initiative workforce education program extended to fifth year
  • Additional $200,000 ExxonMobil grant to support training for skilled workers in expanding industry
  • ExxonMobil has contributed more than $2 million toward training skilled workers

Baytown, Texas — Representatives from ExxonMobil and all nine Houston-area Community College Petrochemical Initiative (CCPI) partnering colleges convened today at ExxonMobil’s office in Baytown to present $45,000 in scholarships to 38 selected students. The program, entering its fifth year with an additional $200,000 grant from ExxonMobil, supports efforts by Houston’s leading community colleges to prepare thousands of local residents for high-paying jobs in the growing local chemical manufacturing industry. ExxonMobil has contributed more than $2 million toward training new workers since the program’s launch.

Enrollment in training programs have grown significantly. The initiative has created greater awareness of opportunities available to those who possess the necessary skills with potential salaries averaging nearly $100,000 a year.

Mike Zamora, director of Americas Regional Manufacturing for ExxonMobil Chemical Company, congratulated the students and spoke to ExxonMobil’s long-time interest in workforce development and continuing investment in the program.

“The Community College Petrochemical Initiative partnership is a wonderful example of what can be accomplished when employers and educators work together,” Zamora said. “As shown by the investments ExxonMobil alone is making as part of our Growing the Gulf initiative, the chemical industry is rapidly expanding along the Gulf Coast due to abundant supplies of domestically produced natural gas. Encouraging and developing a well-educated and skilled workforce is vital to the industry’s success in meeting a growing global demand for chemical products and continuing economic growth and prosperity in Gulf communities.”

With a projected need for more than 50,000 new workers by Gulf Coast-area chemical producers over the next decade, nine Houston-area community colleges are working to find and train the next generation of skilled workers. Initiative partners Alvin Community College, Brazosport College, College of the Mainland, Galveston College, Houston Community College, Lee College, Lone Star College, San Jacinto Junior College and Wharton County Junior College are training students seeking certification or completion of degree programs for instrumentation, electrical, machinist/millwright, welding, pipefitting, and other skills and competencies needed by the chemical industry.

The 2017 scholarship recipients include:

  • Alvin Community College: Charles Manuel, Vanessa Medrano, Jose Padilla, Roberto Pena, Andrew Pier
  • Brazosport College: Rigoberto Cardenas, Patrick Haynes, Zachary Nieto, Yolanda, Richo, Jorge Juarez
  • College of the Mainland: Brittany Brown, Myles Drisdale, Joshua Galabis, Michael Keller, Kincaide Stevens, Burak Temal
  • Galveston College: Victor Gomez, Isaac Jara, Patrick Lantz, Kaylan Mosley
  • Houston Community College: Shayan Naghibipoor, Opeyemi Frances Anthony, Carissa Sims, Marquette Broussard, Samson Balogun
  • Lee College: Christopher Patterson, Edmeade Prentice, Crisol Napoles
  • Lone Star College: Jeremy Powers, Christopher Ross, Carlos Gomez, James Alford, Jason Eldridge, Delane Corley
  • San Jacinto College: Isaac Butcher, Jessica Cranford, Lucida Price
  • Wharton County Junior College: Zachary Zepeta

About the Community College Petrochemical Initiative

The Community College Petrochemical Initiative is a collaboration of nine Texas Gulf Coast Area Community Colleges to recruit and train the next generation of petrochemical and construction trades workers for the Houston-Galveston region. A united vision and direction of the partnership is made through the CCPI Steering Committee, consisting of workforce development leaders from each participating college. If you’re an avid casino player, you’re probably familiar with the traditional slot machines. They come with three reels which provide payout once you get three similar symbols all lined up in the middle.

About ExxonMobil

ExxonMobil, the largest publicly traded international energy company, uses technology and innovation to help meet the world’s growing energy needs. ExxonMobil holds an industry-leading inventory of resources, is one of the largest refiners and marketers of petroleum products and its chemical company is one of the largest in the world. For more information, visit www.exxonmobil.com or follow us on Twitter www.twitter.com/exxonmobil.

College of the Mainland’s new League City facility