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EL SEGUNDO HERALD January 18, 2018 Page 3
two Silver Palms. For his Eagle Scout Project,
Chambers built a badly needed trophy
cabinet made of maple wood for the Felton
Elementary School in Lennox.
– Content/Photo: Gregg McMullin
Douglass
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Letters
Boy Scout Troop 267
Honors Newest Eagle Scout
Eagle Scout Jackson Chambers.
Kudos To Duane Plank’s
Commentary
Another Man’s Opinion: Forget About
Homeless Vets -- Let’s Spend Our Time and $
on Illegals. Thank you. I’m with you 100%!
– Sandra Grady
Some Thoughts
Bravo Councilman Mike Dugan! You are
right on. Reference your comments reported
in the El Segundo Herald January 11 issue
regarding being more attentive to the quality
of life of El Segundo residents. There seems to
be outsized and manic fervor for business development
and how many more new businesses
can be attracted to relocate to El Segundo.
Consider the recent discussions of creating
residential housing East of Sepulveda to accommodate
current and potential employers.
Sure the development in the eastern section
of the city has been well done but at what
point does it affect the quality of life of the
residents. Many of us moved here many of
years ago for the benefits of the small town
atmosphere, in spite of the fact the town was
surrounded by Standard Oil, the Hyperion, a
noisy airport. I realize things must change
but let’s make the residents our first priority
and when business interests fit in…great.
Concerning unfunded pension liability,
would it not help if council/staff stopped
creating new jobs (generally $100K ++
positions), left empty positions empty (we
seemed to be able to get along without them),
and horrors, I hate to mention it, require
some additional contributions from current
employees. Just a suggestion.
– Charles Fisher •
Community Briefs
El Segundo Boy Scout Troop 267 promoted
Jackson Chambers to the rank of Eagle
Scout at a recent Eagle Scout Court of
Honor. Chambers becomes the 76th scout
from Troop 267 to attain the highest rank
of Boy Scouts. Earning the rank of Eagle
is one of the most prestigious and special
moments for a scout. Chambers will be a
part of a small select group to attain the
rank of Eagle. In fact just five percent of
all scouts earn the Eagle rank. Since 1912,
when Arthur Eldred earned the first Eagle
Scout ranking, one U.S. president and 38
astronauts have also earned the top ranking
of the Boy Scouts of America.
In 1924, El Segundo started Troop 267 and
it is one of the oldest troops in the district.
Since its first meeting 93 years ago, Troop
267 has pinned 75 Eagle scouts. George
Eason was the first one to earn his way onto
a special plaque inscribed with all 75 Eagle
scouts and Jackson Chambers’ name will
adorn the next name plate on the plaque.
Chambers earned the required 21 merit
badges for the rank of Eagle and an additional
30 other merit badges, which means he earned
El Segundo High School to Launch
High School of Business Program
El Segundo High School (ESHS) is
now a site for the High School of Business
™ program. Beginning in the 2018-19
academic year, the program will challenge
students through accelerated, project-based
curriculum in preparation for college-level
business administration programs. This curriculum
will be incorporated into the ESHS
Business Pathway.
Participating students will take part in
project-based education that incorporates
learning required skills into the process of
solving real-world business problems. Students
will complete a series of at least six
rigorous business administration courses.
They will use technology in each course,
hear from guest speakers who are subject
matter experts, complete an observational
internship, and learn about business and
community diversity through a partnership
with a sister school.
Teachers and administrators are working together
to ensure students receive the best possible
education through the program. This includes
required professional development for all educators
who teach High School of Business™
courses, as well as establishment of a High
School of Business™ Steering Team at ESHS.
The Steering Team will serve as directors of the
program and will connect teachers, administrators,
and guidance counselors with local business
executives and college faculty. The Steering
Team will serve as directors of the program.
High School of Business™ (www.MBAResearch.
org/HSB) is a program of MBA
Research, a nonprofit organization specializing
in educational research and development of
business and marketing curriculum for high
schools and colleges. For more information
about the program, contact ESHS Principal
Jennifer Tedford at jtedford@esusd.k12.ca.us.
– Source: ESUSD •
El Segundo’s Green Line Stations
to Close Until April
On Friday, Jan. 26, Metro will begin work
to connect the junction of the Crenshaw/LAX
Line and Green Line. The project entails closing
five Green Line stations for 71 days. The
list includes those in El Segundo at Mariposa
Avenue, El Segundo Boulevard and Douglas
Street. The Redondo Beach and Aviation/LAX
stations will also be closed during this period.
To keep service intact, free bus shuttles will run
between the Hawthorne/Lennox and Redondo
Beach stations, stopping at each location at the
same intervals as the Green Line. The LAX
Shuttle G bus will move to the Hawthorne/
Lennox station during the construction period
to serve those going to the airport.
– Source: City of El Segundo •
Construction Career Class
Offers Second Chance for
South Bay Area Residents
By Rob McCarthy
Eleven Inglewood residents have successfully
completed a building industry training
program called HireLAX that gives men and
women from South Bay communities the
tools they’ll need to land construction jobs.
The first graduating class from HireLAX
reflected the diverse population of the communities
that were eligible for the pre-employment
training, according to the sponsors. Of those
who completed the eight-week training, 42
percent were from Inglewood. Two-thirds
of the class were African-American, and 19
percent were women. Hispanics made up 31
percent of the first group who started their
training in September.
The Apprentice Readiness Program at Southwest
College is designed to help entry-level
workers overcome barriers to employment,
including lack of transportation or past troubles
with the law. Other barriers to full-time employment
will be addressed, such as lack of
a high school diploma or GED, child care,
homelessness, and an inability to afford tools.
Recruiters will consider all eligible candidates,
including people on probation or who completed
their sentences. The HireLAX program
offers a second chance to men and women
with criminal convictions, who typically are
turned down by employers. That could start
to change because of a new law in California,
and the tight labor market in which employers
reportedly are offering people jobs despite past
troubles with the law.
Starting on Jan. 1, employers no longer can
ask job applicants if they’ve been convicted of
a crime. An employer can withdraw an offer
of employment to a candidate if a conviction
or criminal history shows up on a background
check. Small businesses with five or fewer
workers are exempt, along with some government
and criminal-justice positions.
A criminal background isn’t a deal-breaker to
the HireLAX organizers, who revealed that 46
percent of the first-class graduates had brushes
with the law before being accepted.
The HireLAX Apprenticeship Readiness
program is an outreach by LAX officials
and local building industry groups who are
scrambling to hire qualified employees for
the $14 billion modernization program at the
airport. Contractors performing work on the
massive LAX upgrade to terminals, runways
and parking structures are expected to hire
more than 30 percent of their crews from the
local communities, the airport authority says.
“The HireLAX program trains local residents
to earn these jobs,” said airport spokeswoman
Christina Watkins.
Sponsors of the pre-employment training are
bullish about the job prospects in the construction
trades. As many as 30 percent of people
currently in construction trades are expected to
retire within the next five years, according to
the LAX-sponsored work-readiness effort. Plus,
a surge in construction is expected across the
city. “This creates the challenge of not enough
skilled workers for all of the work, but also
a great opportunity for anyone interested in
construction,” organizers say.
The eight-week pre-employment training
is designed to send the graduates into union
apprenticeship programs or directly to work
with the airport’s contractors to begin their
construction careers at LAX. Currently,
there are more job openings at building sites
throughout Greater Los Angeles than skilled
laborers to fill them.
HireLAX successfully found 13 of its
graduates work with a union or contractor,
Watkins reported. The program is forming a
second group of trainees who’ll begin class
on Monday, Feb. 5 at Southwest College.
Anyone interested in starting a construction
industry career or learning a trade is invited
to participate.
An orientation will be held Saturday, Jan.
20 at the college, 1600 W. Imperial Hwy. The
three-hour orientation is mandatory and begins
promptly at 8:30 a.m. Doors open at 7:30 a.m.
and late arrivals will not be admitted. Personal
interviews will be conducted Saturday, so bring
a resume and proof of right to work.
The HireLAX Apprentice Readiness program
is sponsored by the airports in partnership
with Los Angeles Trade Technical College,
Los Angeles Southwest College, and the
Los Angeles/Orange Counties Building and
Construction Trades Council. “Our HireLAX
program provides training and opportunities to
local workers who want to take part in modernizing
LAX and building our next chapter. We
hope that people will embrace this opportunity
and join us on orientation day.” said Samson
Mengitsu, the chief operation officer with the
LA World Airports.
Residents of Inglewood, Mar Vista,
Westchester, Hawthorne and Lennox are
eligible, but the deadline to apply is this
week. Register immediately for Saturday’s
orientation online at www.eventbrite.com/e/
hirelax-apprenticeship-readiness-program-arporientation
tickets-41577837431, and wait for
an email with instructions.
Within a few days of registering, you will
receive an email with further information regarding
applying for the program. Failure to
fill out this paperwork in advance will delay
your application and may result in you not
being fully screened on the day of orientation.
To be accepted into this LAX-area workreadiness
program, applicants must show
proof of residency, be at least 17 1/2 years old
and have a strong interest in the construction
industry. A California identification card and
Social Security card are musts too. •