Logistics and Supply Chain Management Career Training 

Grant helping people make career moves -

From The Nogales International March 16, 2010

Interesting work at a good salary might seem like too much to expect in a depressed job market, but no-cost training for jobs with those qualities is now available at Cochise College.

Thanks to a grant from the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training, Cochise College, Cochise County Workforce Development, Santa Cruz County One Stop and several other partners in a regional consortium are providing logistics training that prepares students for jobs associated with the transportation and supply chain management industry.

The first students began the course in Sierra Vista in January, and students are now being accepted for another set of classes that begins March 11 in both Sierra Vista and Nogales.

The opportunity to re-focus her career is just what Robin Collins sought. A Sierra Vista resident, Collins left her job as a certified nursing assistant to take care of family and returned to a discouraging job market.

She found a retail job but would have preferred something that offers more stability. So a Cochise County Workforce Development announcement about the free logistics courses seemed like a good opportunity to take control of her future.

“I thought ‘who gives a free class? I can’t pass this up,’” Collins said. “My immediate goal is to get enough out of the program to get a job.”

The students who began the program in January are in the early stages of pursuing a Basic Logistics Supply Chain Management Certificate.

Curriculum also is in place for an advanced certificate and an associate of applied science degree. The program is layered so that each level builds upon the previous, with the basic certificate requiring 18 credits and the associate degree 64.

Even at the entry level, there is a healthy demand in Southern Arizona for qualified individuals with some education or experience in logistics management, according to John DeLalla, who is teaching the students at the Sierra Vista Campus. Nogales’ thriving cross-border trade and transportation industry, and Fort Huachuca’s military and contractor community offer opportunities for qualified individuals to get a foot in the door and gain some experience in moving goods and supplies from one location to another.

“It’s interesting work, the pay is respectable and a basic level of classroom experience and common sense is what you need to get started,” said DeLalla, who has an event logistics background with Disney and the Grammy-award winning band Goo Goo Dolls, and also worked in railroad transportation in California before moving to Arizona 15 years ago.

The basic program covers inventory control, computerized logistics, warehouse management, transportation and traffic management, international logistics and readiness skills for logistics management.

In Sierra Vista, students will see the sort process at the local FedEx facility, and DeLalla is considering trips to other venues so the students can see supply chain management in action.

The Department of Labor grant is covering the cost of tuition, books and supplies, which is what drew Helen Affsa, a Bisbee resident seeking a career change. Affsa expects to continue working for at least 20 years and was looking for something that would tax her mind, not her body.

Although it’s too soon to tell where she’ll end up, she’s keeping an eye on developments related to the new Douglas Port of Entry, which could result in new jobs in the region.

“Where can you have an opportunity to get training for free?” Affsa said. “I’m making a move to advance my future.”

*To learn more …*

The logistics program is offered at Cochise College in Sierra Vista and Nogales. To access the classes at no cost, interested students need to be U.S. citizens and provide a birth certificate or passport and photo identification. Former members of the military need a DD214. Classes begin March 11.

This is an Equal Opportunity Employer/Program. Auxiliary aids and services are available upon request to individuals with disabilities. Innovation Frontier Arizona is funded by a WIRED grant from the U.S. Department of Labor.