HCC students receive scholarships to pursue training for Petrochemical careers

Sep 2, 2015

With the Gulf Coast area petrochemical industry needing more than 50,000 new workers within the decade, Houston Community College (HCC) is among nine community colleges that have set out to find and train the “next generation” of skilled workers, enabled by a grant from the ExxonMobil Foundation.

Now in its third year, the Community College Petrochemical Initiative (CCPI) has spread the word across the region that salaries in this expanding industry average $99,700 and enrollment in training programs is growing significantly. Representatives from all nine partnering colleges and ExxonMobil recently met in the Nolan Ryan Center on the Alvin Community College campus to present 43 selected students with more than $60,000 in scholarships.

The 2015 scholarship recipients from HCC include: Samson Akinlade, engineering; Johnathan Barra, Electrician Technology; Victor Lopez, Welding Technology; Vaibhav Patel, Drafting and Design Technology; Binh Pham, Drafting and Design Technology; and Tuyen Le, Engineering Technology.

Woody Paul, manager of the ExxonMobil Baytown Olefins Plant, reminded students that, “While their backgrounds and stories may differ, each one is seeking to improve their lives through careers in the petrochemical industry.”

Paul applauded their discipline, tenacity, and determination as they juggled career training with family and current jobs.

In all, ExxonMobil has contributed more than $1.5 million towards training skilled new workers. This is the second consecutive year that CCPI and ExxonMobil have brought together new recipients to present scholarships and encourage them in their educational pursuits.

To learn more about programs offered at HCC, visit hccs.edu/programs.