“Don’t let people underestimate you, don’t underestimate yourselves.” – Olga Rodriguez, SER Chief Program Officer

After 17 weeks of perseverance and dedication, our welding class has graduated! Setting aside over four months of one’s life to work towards personal betterment is a tricky thing to do. However, we are incredibly proud of all of our graduates for how far they’ve come and looked forward to continuing their journey with them through our employment services and financial opportunity center.

At the graduation ceremony, our graduates were treated to a line-up of experienced speakers to give them some insight on their future potential as well as behind-the-scenes insider tips from industry professionals. Our Chief Program Officer, Olga Rodriguez, began by sharing our graduates a message of encouragement. She gives co-workers and SER partners one clear message, “do not underestimate our clients.” At the graduation ceremony, she wanted to make sure our clients got the same message: “Don’t let people underestimate you, don’t underestimate yourselves.”

We had guest speakers Maria Martinez of Weld Force Group and Alan Solorzano, President of South Coast Welding Academy, give our clients some industry secrets. But, ultimately, they gave them the same message:

1. Do not be afraid to start as a helper.
2. Hard work and initiative will take you far in the welding industry.

“The skills I learned here, no one can take from me.” – Edgar Salazar, Welding Graduate

We concluded the ceremony by inviting one of our students to discuss his time in SER’s welding program. “I’ve never been somewhere where it’s all up to us,” said Edgar Salazar when discussing SER. “I appreciate everything they gave us. They gave us unlimited resources.”

Our resources do not go very far without our clients’ drive “to be” successful. Our welding program is extended, rigorous, and very competitive to get into. We are proud of our graduates and look forward to watching their bright futures.

The post Welding Class Conquers Four Months of Training appeared first on SERJobs.

After his adoptive father abandoned his mother, Daniel W. hated seeing his mother struggle. So before starting high school, Daniel dropped out to work to help support the family, including a younger brother and sister.

“I went to work as a janitor at Metro,” said Daniel, “then jobs in construction, plumbing, roofing, painting, and carpentry followed. I’ve always hustled to get jobs, and I took what I could to help my family. Sometimes I had to lie about my age and experience, but once I was hired, I paid attention to what others were doing, so I looked like I knew what I was doing.”

At 18, Daniel found a well-paying job at a welding company and discovered his passion.

“The welding company hired me as a painter/welder, even without training,” said Daniel, “they trained me. So I PICKED IT UP PRETTY QUICKLY because I enjoyed what I was doing. But while I was working, my mom kept bringing up that I needed my GED, so I decided to take her advice.”

Daniel wanted a future in welding, but at 19, he agreed that it was essential to get his GED first. Then, he came across SER’s YouthBuild Program, where 17-24-year-old participants can earn their GED while gaining skills in construction, earning a stipend, and helping to rebuild and repair housing in low-income communities in the Greater Houston area.

“This first week of the class was Mental Toughness,” said Daniel, “I mostly stayed to myself – I’m very observant, and I wanted to see who would make it and who wouldn’t. So I watched who was taking it seriously, so I would know who to get close to.”

“To be honest, at first, it was frustrating because it had been four years since I’d been in school, and I had a lot to learn, but [Instructor] Mr. Sweeny was very patient and cared about us. He made sure we were serious, and I respect him for that.”

During the construction component of the class, Daniel stood out.

“When we worked on rebuilding and repairing houses, a construction company manager saw my hard work and asked me if I wanted a job when I completed YouthBuild,” said Daniel, “but I didn’t take that offer because I had my mind set on welding. However, I enjoyed it in the past and believe it has the potential to play well.”

After obtaining his GED, Daniel’s career coach helped him develop an action plan.

“[She] helped me get a scholarship to Industrial Welding Academy. I took two classes and plan to take the third class soon. During that time, I also took a position at La Chamba for four months while I went to school at night.”

“After welding academy, I was able to get a job in the industry, and I am so thankful. Now I’m well paid, I appreciate my job, and I feel that they appreciate me.”

At age 20, Daniel is happily settling into his new life as a welder and a family man.

“I met a great girl here at SER who is now my fiancée,” said Daniel, “she also took classes at the welding academy. We’ve been together five months now, and I’m ready to settle down. She was part of a package deal, and I love being a dad to our two-year-old son. None of this would have happened if it wasn’t for SER. I have a lot to be thankful for.”

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Our first-class made history the first of its kind and one of our first courses to be offered at night. We are proud of our clients and would like to thank them for their dedication and our staff working tirelessly to bring about such excellent results.

We would also like to thank our sponsors and partners, Unidos – Latinos At Work and Primary Services, for their time, talent, and generous support of SER and this inaugural program. Congratulations to our class!

The post SER’s First Digital Literacy Class appeared first on SERJobs.

The representatives attended the graduation and learned more about our qualified banking clients! As a result, our graduates are ready to take anything from a teller to a customer service representative to a relationship banker to a personal banker.

A special thanks to our sponsors and partners, The Sheri and Les Biller Family Foundation, Wells Fargo, Capital One, BBVA, Allegiance Bank, Bank of America, Comerica, Chase, Woodforest, Frost, Space City Credit Union, and United Way of Greater Houston.

The post Latest BankWork$ Co-Hort Interviews with Bank of America appeared first on SERJobs.

Originally from Mobile, Alabama, Justin L. moved to Houston after his wife received a job offer. Ultimately, they decided to dive into a new state because they had high hopes that the Houston job market would help secure their family’s financial future.

“When we came here, my wife was working, and my job was supposed to transfer me, but they started just giving me the runaround.” Depending on his previous employer for job security in the Lone Star state quickly led to hardships when they could not deliver what they initially promised him. “The first two months we were here, we ended up living in a hotel, we have five kids,” Justin explains.

In need of an opportunity for himself and his family, Lewis “went on Indeed and saw the BankWork$ program,” he initially thought that it looked like a “scam” because “it was too good to be true.” Our BankWork$ program trains individuals to build meaningful careers in banking. But, still skeptical, he decided to take a leap of faith.

“When I first came to the class, I didn’t know how to dress. I didn’t know how to talk in a business setting. So every time I got in front of people, I would get nervous and sweat profusely- like right now,” he says, gesturing to our interview setup, “I would’ve been pouring sweat because you’re somebody new.”

Aware of the challenges ahead, Lewis admits that he had difficulty adjusting to the program. “At first, it was a struggle, but Jose kept working with me.” Jose V., SER’s BankWork$ instructor, “was like a father figure” to Justin. “I feel like that,” he says. He explains his reasoning by saying, “He showed me a lot, not just in banking but in life. He taught me how to dress. He taught me how to talk, he taught me how to turn negative situations into positive situations, and even word things differently into making them positive.”

Reflecting through his time with SER and the BankWork$ program, he says that, “It was a blessing.” The skills he learned through the program were quickly used to improve his daily life when he had to go back to Mobile for a court hearing. Justin says that he will never forget how seamlessly the training he received transferred into this professional setting; “A lot of the stuff he taught me helped me go into that courtroom and win that case for my children. How to dress, how to talk, how to go in there and present yourself.”

We must mention that Justin’s transition from training to employment was not simple. He told us that he became skeptical of the program after he “couldn’t get a job,” despite “applying and applying” to work at different banks. Finally, after three weeks of submitting job applications, Lewis landed an interview with Woodforest National Bank.

He immediately called Jose to tell him the good news. The day before the interview, Jose gave him a pep-talk saying, “You know what they want. I’ve shown you what they want. No, go in there and be what they want.” Justin said the interview went perfectly and later added, “anything I’ve needed from Jose, he’s never let me down.”

Lewis sums up his life post-BankWork$ quickly by saying, “It’s been wonderful ever since.”

When speaking with Justin, his fulfillment with his new career is clear. “I love my manager and my branch. I wake up every morning and don’t dread going to work.” Although, it’s not just his actual job that has brought him happiness. He tells SER that, “ever since I started working there, everything’s been good. I can take care of my family. My wife started at HCC [Houston Community College], she’s enrolled in nursing class.”

He’s proud to be able to take care of his family and allow his wife to focus on her new classes so that she can “get the same feeling I got” in graduating and beginning a new career. In addition, not having to worry about making ends meet or worrying about his children’s expenses is a welcomed relief. “From going to living in a hotel for two months and looking for a place to stay and now we have somewhere to live. Everybody’s happy. Everything’s going good.”

The post Justin’s Story appeared first on SERJobs.

“I never saw that coming.”

A common mistake when thinking about individuals in need of additional assistance is assuming that they got to a place of need due to lack of knowledge– or maybe even laziness. Sometimes an individual can do everything “right.” They have the right job, they show up for their employers and their family, they work hard, and yet life still throws them many curveballs.

This is exactly what happened to Douglas Washington. “I was the hospital supply technician,” Washington begins to explain. Right off the bat, there is a sense of tension over this subject. Washington worked at the same hospital in Galveston, TX since 2001. He did his part in saving lives by making sure the hospital was always stocked with the necessary equipment for doctors and nurses to use.

Despite missing “so much time in my oldest daughter’s life because I was always working,” he was happy with his position. A change in management became an unexpected obstacle in Washington’s life path. While we don’t know the entire story, we can speak to how he felt. “They kind of ganged up on me,” he says.

After navigating his newly hostile work environment for a while, Washington eventually came to terms with the fact that it was time to move on. After years of employment, “I never saw that coming,” he tells us.

“I just decided to take a chance and see where this takes me.”

If you ask someone to tell you their story, you often won’t get the full picture. Life is full of subtle nuances that we do not think about as being key components of our “story.” For Douglas Washington, this was scrolling through Facebook.

He came across a SERJobs Facebook post advertising our CORE + Construction program. This two-to-eight week program allows clients to obtain their NCCER and Osha 10 certifications. After going to our website and investigating what we do, Washington “just decided to take a chance and see where this takes me.” Little did he know that this chance would lead him down a path of career advancement as well as personal fulfillment.

While the timeline varies for every client, Washington completed the CORE + Construction program in three weeks. A large component of his time with SER was spent doing on the job training. This is where he discovered that construction is more than just a job.

The Hurricane Harvey news cycle is long behind us, but the devastation it left behind is still painfully present in the Houston community. Through our programming, Washington honed in on his construction skills while helping to rebuild homes damaged by Harvey. “I have a lot of stories about seeing what people have lost, but they see us coming and the look on their faces– they tell us thank you.”

Through helping rebuild homes and rebuilding the livelihood of those in our community, Washington proved to be a diligent and ambitious worker. He told us that he would often “go to the main office and be sent to other places” when his current sites were on hold. Hard work never goes unnoticed.

“They must’ve really liked what I was doing,” he notes when discussing his current employer, “They even went as far as to secure a grant for me.” This grant allowed Washington to join the employer in a full-time capacity.

“I don’t have to have my guard up anymore.”

Since transitioning into his new career path in construction, Washington has found happiness in a job with a workplace culture he finds meaningful. “I don’t have to have my guard up anymore,” he told us when discussing how at peace he felt in his new environment. “One thing I like about them is they take the time to pray every morning,” he finds this change of pace comforting. As the sole caregiver for his two daughters, he notes that this new path has also given him more time to spend with them. Overall, leading to a more fulfilling work-life balance.

When asked what his advice would be to someone interested in going through one of SER’s services, he said: “All you have to do is have a good frame of mind, be willing to learn, and be ready to rebuild someone’s life.” From Washington’s family members to the strangers with homes damaged by Hurricane Harvey, Washington is rebuilding his life and the lives of those around him for the better.

The post “I don’t have to have my guard up anymore.” appeared first on SERJobs.

Taking the time to recognize this holiday strengthens our cultural ties as an organization with diverse staff and clients and also strengthens the community bond between staff members.

Our SER ofrenda will be up all of next week! We encourage all community members to stop by, grab some delicious La Chamba coffee, and take the time to honor your deceased family or friends.

The post Celebrating Life By Honoring Death appeared first on SERJobs.

SERJobs Training Specialist, Deja King, orchestrated the event, welcoming a few speakers before certificates were presented. The first graduation speaker was SERJobs Chief Programs Officer, Olga Rodriguez. She made one thing clear to our clients– they must be willing to give themselves “permission” to be successful.  After that we had two potential employers speak to the graduates about their companies and what types of jobs they are hiring for. We are grateful to MeLisa Minter of ACARI Management Group and Donna Subwade of 3rd Ward Community Cooperative Builders for taking the time to speak to our clients about potential job opportunities.

The ceremony portion of the event came to a climax when students from both training programs stood up to share a few remarks. Lorenzo Cervantes graduating from our CORE training program said, “I’m just proud to have the chance to redeem myself. I look in the mirror and see a man with integrity.” Carlton Barney graduating from our CDL program discussed his experience before SER. He said that while he was in jail, re-entry program “filled my head with hope,” but when he got out he had no luck. “I went to 76 job interviews and was told no 76 times,” then he decided to give SER a chance and now he is on track to starting a new career.

SER would like to thank our sponsors and partners for their time, talent, and generous support of our clients and organization. We are grateful to Rebuild, USAA, DOL, and City of Houston.

The post Celebrating Recent CDL And Construction Clients appeared first on SERJobs.

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A few rooms down, representatives from Census 2020 were also conducting presentations on the benefits of working as a census taker for the upcoming 2020 census. Compensation, expectations, and perks of this flexible position were all discussed in one of our classrooms before job-seekers were led to our computer lab to submit an application.

All-in-all it was a great day to be at SERJobs!

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