Jamaul attributes much of his drive for self-improvement to supporting his family and serving as a positive role model for his two children.
After out of high school, Taylor worked for retail and customer service positions as a third-party contractor, but he didn’t find a field where he thought he could grow. He saw an ad for Central Virginia Community College’s FastForward Manufacturing Technician training programs and thought that would help find a position in his field of interest.
In 2017, Taylor began the Manufacturing Specialist FastForward Training Program at CVCC where he successfully earned his Manufacturing Specialist credential from the Virginia Manufacturers Association’s Manufacturing Skills Institute. Taylor continued to earn the next level of certification by obtaining his Manufacturing Technician 1 certification in 2018.
“The training was very broad and covered just about everything that you would encounter in a manufacturing environment,” he said.
Taylor’s tuition was supported through FastForward. He also had additional scholarship funding through the Virginia Tobacco Region Revitalization Commission, which provides assistance to students pursuing credentials in high-demand occupations within the tobacco region footprint.
Taylor was hired as a Press Brake Operator by Porter’s Group, a custom sheet metal fabricator in Lynchburg. Taylor’s future plans are to continue his education and build his skills and certifications to help him grow within the field. He has enrolled in CVCC’s new FastForward Electrical Training.
“The concepts I learned have been helpful in my new position. Concepts such as precise measurement are very important to accuracy in my role,” Taylor said. “I plan to come back to CVCC and keep taking classes which could help with future opportunities. It has been a good learning experience and I was taught a lot.”