SACA recently opened a second Tec Centro location on High Street in Lancaster.
Anthony Orozco / WITF
Tec Centro’s Impact on Students looking for a fresh start
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Asia Tabb
Anthony Orozco / WITF
SACA recently opened a second Tec Centro location on High Street in Lancaster.
Airdate: Monday, June 24, 2024
Tec Centro in Lancaster offers many workforce programs in Central Pennsylvania. It was founded in 2014 through the Spanish American Civic Association. Tec Centro also helps formally incarcerated individuals to reenter into the workforce. He started the Tec Centro program in 2023 and graduated that same year.
Frank Bailey completed the Electromechanical program offered at Tec Centro. Before attending the program, he spent 7.5 years in state prison, and wanted a fresh start. Bailey was convicted of illegal possession of a firearm in 2016.
He discovered Tec Centro through another person looking to enter the workforce post prison.
“I was first introduced to Tec Centro through another student that was signing up. I just so happened to come home right around the time the next semester was going to begin.”
Bailey completed the program and is now employed at Mars Wrigley in Elizabethtown. Reinaldo “Ray” Rivera is the Associate Director at Tec Centro. Rivera says in addition to students completing their programs, resume writing, and interview preparation is included to set the students up for success. After, Tec Centro hosts internal job fairs for their participants.
“The way these programs are put together is to keep in mind that once the individual completes the program, they’ll be able to secure a well-paying job with benefits.”
Although Tec Centro was founded through the Spanish American Civic Association, Rivera wants to break the stigma that Tec Centro only serves the Spanish population.
“People think that awe only serve the Spanish population and we don’t help anybody that walks through our doors. And we’re trying to move away from that currently.”
For Bailey, Tec Centro helped him redirect his life.
“I knew coming home, I needed to get into a competitive job market, and I needed the skills to be able to compete for those job opportunities. I got into Tec Centro, and I realized how valuable the resources, skills, and training they give you is. That this is a great program that people should take advantage of.”
