Gainesville School Board members learned this week how valuable that program is to the students and to Kubota, a Japanese tractor and tractor implement producer that located in Gainesville in 1988 and has steadily expanded.
Woods Mill reached out to Kubota, according to assistant program coordinator Gay Maehrlein, and Kubota became interested the school's interns.
"Their philosophy is you get a job for life," Maehrlein said. "When they said that to the kids we actually looked at them and said that's right, they're offering a job for life. "
If the students want to move to another department, Kubota will move them around because the firm wants to keep its people.
"These kids are looking at jobs, careers, their whole lives are going to change, " Maehrlein added.
This is a first time effort with Youth Employment for Kubota. Meahrlein said the Woods Mill interns go to school one day a week and then go to work at Kubota where they earn class credit. She hopes to get as many students involved as possible so that they will be able to walk out the school door with a diploma and a job.
Maehrlein said she wants Woods Mill to become "a conduit for careers."
Woods Mill interns told board members they are benefiting from the program.
Gay Maehrlein (L) told board members she wants Woods Mill to become a career conduit.
http://accesswdun.com/article/2012/3/246435