NACOGDOCHES, TX (KTRE) -
ExxonMobil Production will be hiring locally after the first of the year. Its $10,000 donation to the Nacogdoches Technical Education Center illustrates the corporation's support for specialized training in the petroleum field.
"Because we think it's really important to help the future, to build the careers and build the workforce of tomorrow," said Deedra Moe, a public and government affairs advisor for ExxonMobile.
Charlie Campbell, ExxonMobil's East Texas area gas field superintendent, oversees about a dozen East Texans working on fields from Overton to Trawick.
"For the type of work that we do a technical center provides more mechanical type, on the job, hands on type skill than a university does," said Campbell.
Yet classroom instruction, including long distance learning, is intensive. It's preparation for a highly competitive job market offering promising incentives.
"People are sometimes surprised by how much the salaries are that the employees are paid," said Campbell.
As a result, it's expected more students will seek out technical education centers. There are several technical education centers in Deep East Texas. Facilities can be found in Nacogdoches, Crockett, Center and Carthage.
Right now Nacogdoches classrooms are used for a variety of purposes, not just petroleum technical training. Angelina College offers some basic college courses. There's also instruction for firefighters and future nurses.
The Nacogdoches center offered around a half a dozen petroleum technical classes in its first academic year. More will follow.
"Probably sometime in early to mid may of 2013 then Angelina college will vacate that building for the next 8 months and we'll go into a construction phase," said Bill King, director of Nacogdoches Economic Development Corporation which oversees the technical center development.
Governmental and private grants will assure future growth. It's just one more effort to build and keep jobs in East Texas.
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