Through the Corporate Training Services program at St. Petersburg Junior College, students are able to get a taste of the corporate world through classes on business issues and training on software used by businesses within the community, either in the classroom or on the job site.
St. Petersburg has run this service for the past 10 years through its Open Campus System. Students who take classes through the program generally either have a degree or are not interested in a degree but just want to acquire a certain skill. Either faculty train students or a company’s employees at the job site, or the company brings employees to the center after the service has determined needs through an interview or a survey of the employees.
The program’s classes are held at the Corporate Training Center, 10 miles from the college’s main campus near Tampa Bay. The 7,000-square-foot office complex, which has been used for five years by the college, is designed to expose students to a corporate environment and maintain a feeling of professionalism. Many classes are taught there, which is convenient for many students, according to Beth Chandler, assistant director for the Corporate Training Center. The site consists of two computer labs—one with Macintosh workstations, the other with DOS computers. Two management rooms are designed especially for the management training classes.
There are three divisions within the Corporate Training Services program: Technical Services, Management Services, and Economic Development. Technical Services offers computer-related training on Macintosh software, such as System 7, PageMaker, FileMaker Pro, Adobe Illustrator, HyperCard, HyperTalk, Microsoft Word, and Microsoft Excel.
These classes consist of very little lecture and many hands-on activities. Each student has access to a computer and can tackle the program after the instructor has walked through the features.
Management Services offers training for phone skills, communication skills, time management, networking, grammar for professionals, and cultural diversity issues using interactive exercises. Students role-play situations, like encountering a difficult customer, or watch a video on how someone might deal with a difficult situation. Discussion follows in class, allowing students to become involved in the topic presented. Hands-on practices, rather than the traditional studying of theory, are emphasized throughout the program.
Economic Development offers classes in real estate, insurance, small business development, non-profit organizations, special licensing requirements, and international business.
These informative classes focus on preparing students for such real-life challenges as the required state exam for real estate and insurance licenses. They are also useful for people who already possess a license and need the required units annually to maintain that license.
Companies have been known to come to Corporate Training Services to request the reputable skills of instructors there even though they may have in-house training programs.
For information, contact Beth Chandler at St. Petersburg Junior College, Corporate Training Services, P.O. Box 13489, or 3200 34th St. South, St. Petersburg, FL 33711; (813) 341-4462.
