BMCC Celebrates the Life-Changing Role of Registered Apprenticeships

Higher education partnerships with industry leaders result in apprenticeships, networking opportunities and valuable mentoring experiences for students who are eager to kick off their careers and raise the socio-economic standing of their families and communities.

To showcase the important role of Registered Apprenticeships and to honor industry partners of Borough of Manhattan Community College (BMCC/CUNY) — including Amazon, AON, Cisco, IBM and Zurich Insurance — BMCC recognized the U.S. Department of Labor’s 9^th Annual National Apprenticeship Week on November 16.

The event was hosted by the Adult Continuing Education division of the BMCC Center for Adult Continuing Education and Workforce Development at its 25 Broadway campus in the Wall Street neighborhood of Lower Manhattan.

Apprentice alumni receive Trailblazer Award; Industry Partners also awarded

A program highlight was presentation of the college’s first Trailblazer Award to two BMCC alumni who have leveraged their apprenticeship experience into career entry in their fields of choice.

Kennedy Ehiwe graduated from BMCC with an Associate in Business degree in 2022, having completed an apprenticeship program with Aon, where he now holds a full-time position.

The other alumni winner was Noel Guzman, who completed the Computer Network Support program in the BMCC Center for Continuing Education and Workforce Development in 2018, having earned Cisco CCNA certification. He is now employed full-time in a tech role at Stagwell Global.

In addition to student awards, an Industry Partner Award was presented to BMCC’s apprenticeship providers AON, Cisco, IBM, Amazon and Zurich.

“IBM shares BMCC’s ironclad commitment to preparing learners for rewarding STEM-related careers,” said Michelle Gilliard, Corporate Social Responsibility Leader at IBM Americas.

“We do this by equipping educators and learners with engaging IBM SkillsBuild content and providing experiential apprenticeships on a competitive basis. We appreciate BMCC’s recognition and, more importantly, our longstanding collaboration.”

David Fredericks, Engineering and Architecture Leader, said on behalf of Cisco, “We were honored to accept the BMCC Apprenticeship award today. Cisco’s mission to build an inclusive future for all aligns 100% to BMCC’s. We look forward to continuing this partnership in the years ahead.”

CUNY Assoc. Provost Lauren Anderson, Michael Todisco receive certificates of appreciation

Keynote speaker Lauren Anderson, University Associate Provost of Careers and Industry Partnerships, emphasized that students don’t have to choose between learning in the classroom and launching their careers.

“They can do both simultaneously,” Anderson said, “thanks to innovative apprenticeship programs like those underway here at BMCC. BMCC’s work to expand apprenticeship opportunities for students — and develop effective talent pools for employers — is a fantastic example of CUNY’s commitment to accelerating student career success.”

Anderson added that “meeting the University’s bold goal of expanding paid internship and apprenticeship opportunities will depend on the creative commitment of faculty and employers, and those here today are at the leading edge of this work. It’s thrilling to see these effective pathways for working and learning take root at BMCC and beyond.”

Michael Todisco from Apprenticeship Connections also spoke, and both Todisco and Anderson were honored with Certificates of Appreciation for supporting the event and raising awareness of the importance of apprentices in helping students move into career paths that align with their skills and goals.

Asst. VP Terry Kidd and other BMCC speakers highlight the power of apprenticeships to create career pipelines and transform lives

Among the speakers from BMCC was Steven Nuñez, Director of Apprenticeship Programs in the Adult Continuing Education division of the Center for Continuing Education and Workforce Development.

“This event signifies the interests of both academia and industry collaborating to build successful pathways to the middle-class,” Nuñez said. “BMCC is excited to partner with industry leaders who are able to make a difference in the lives of our students who seek a better life and a sustainable career through apprenticeships.”

BMCC’s Gail Fernandez, Associate Dean of Faculty and Sharon Reid, Director of Internships and Experiential Learning, also spoke.

Closing comments were delivered by Assistant Vice President, Adult and Continuing Education and Workforce Development Terry Kidd.

“Apprenticeships are instrumental in rebuilding our economy, advancing racial and gender equity, building a pipeline to good-quality jobs and supporting underserved communities,” said Kidd. “They address pressing workforce shortages in teaching, advanced manufacturing, clean energy, cybersecurity and other high-priority sectors, and have a proven track record of matching our students’ career goals with the workforce needs of our forward-thinking industry partners.”

He adds that the joint efforts of employer partners, workforce leaders and educators “both expand and diversify the range of Registered Apprenticeships made available to our talented and ambitious students.”

The event closed with a tour of tech classrooms and the facilities at BMCC’s 25 Broadway campus.

For more information on workforce apprenticeship programs at BMCC, contact Steven Nuñez at snunez@bmcc.cuny.edu.