As part of National Apprenticeship Week, Mohawk Valley Community College today joined the Manufacturers Association of Central New York (MACNY) and Custom Tool & Model Corporation (CTM) in celebrating the achievements of Landon Malanoski, who recently attained his CNC Machinist Journey Worker Certification under MACNY sponsorship and has been chosen by the U.S. Department of Labor to serve as an Apprenticeship Trailblazer.
Malanoski is one of 57 youth apprentices and recent apprenticeship graduates selected for the inaugural cohort of Apprenticeship Trailblazers, a U.S. Department of Labor initiative to recognize the accomplishments of young apprentices (under the age of 24) and create a national network of diverse apprentices and apprenticeship graduates to share their stories and show how registered apprenticeships increase opportunities for underserved populations. The first cohort of Apprentice Trailblazers will focus on youth ages 16 to 24 and recent youth apprenticeship graduates.
To achieve the CNC Machinist Journey Worker Certification, Malanoski spent 8,000 hours in on-the-job training at CTM in Frankfort and over 1,000 hours in related instruction at MVCC, where he is on track to earn an associate degree in Mechanical Engineering Technology next month. With ambitions to earn a bachelor’s degree in engineering, Malanoski plans to register into the Manufacturing Engineering Technician trade at CTM to gain another Journey Worker Certification and additional college credits.
“CTM vigorously embraced the apprenticeship program with MVCC,” said Jim Rager, Director of Business Development at CTM. “We believe it will help us with retention and add technical capacity to our business. Landon was recognized as a Trailblazer in this process ... CTM could see that Landon has abilities to invest in.”
“I am so proud of the hard work and determination that Landon Malanoski put into his apprenticeship to get to this point,” said Franca Armstrong, Executive Director of Apprenticeships at MVCC. “This is not an end of an apprenticeship but the beginning of a remarkable career. His passion and skills have brought him to this point and will be key for his future.”