As part of the vocational school program at the Centralia Correctional Center, approved inmates have been given the chance to receive HVAC certification by receiving instruction in a newly established classroom. HVAC is the prison’s newest vocational program, and on Monday the second round of students completed the certification.
Instructor Zachary Miller says the students have to put in the work to learn a variety of skills. While the first class learned while installing much of the equipment now used in the classroom, the second class was able to make use of the equipment from the beginning and work from established lesson plans.
The goal of vocational school in the prison is to ensure that inmates will have skills and education to find employment once they are released. Miller says that the training students receive in his classes can be applied to several different types of work.
“They may specialize in being a sheet metal worker, or they may just want to be service techs,” Miller said. “Some guys may just want to put in brand new systems all the time. There are lots of avenues they can go down.”
On the last day of class, students showcased to visitors some of the work they’ve done in class, including crafted sheet metal, electric current, and hand-drawn floor plans. The program takes 134 days of training to complete.
The program is run in partnership with Kaskaskia College, which provides certificates to inmates who successfully complete the coursework.
HVAC students demonstrate an electrical board that simulates the operation of a furnace. Photo by Austin Williams.
The letters “KC” crafted by HVAC students using sheet metal. Photo by Austin Williams.
Panels used by HVAC students for training. Photo by Austin Williams.
