Darrius Cole, 30, listens as his instructor Lisa Miller draws a diagram on the board in a Power Plant Components lab Tuesday at Chattanooga State.SKILLS GAPIn metropolitan Chattanooga, most jobs require some level of college but less than half of all those unemployed have no collegiate training.Job demands• Bachelor’s degree – 36.1 percent• Associate’s degree or some college less than bachelor’s – 33.8 percentHigh school diploma or less – 30.1 percentUnemployed worker skills• Bachelor’s degree – 12.1 percent• Associate’s degree or some college – 29.8 percent• High school diploma or less – 57.5 percentJobs in demandThe jobs with the most openings in Chattanooga during January and February, 2012 were:Title of occupation Openings• Health diagnosing and treating practitioners 1,488• Computer occupations 1,178• Motor vehicle operators 1,037• Supervisors of sales workers 553• Service sales representatives 476• Information and record clerks 465• Engineers 444• Retail sales workers 366• Health technologists, technicians 350• Sales manufacturing representatives 345Source: Brookings Institute
At age 31, four months after being laid off from his last job, Darrius Cole is starting his career over by going back to school.
The former construction worker from Florence, Ala., is among two dozen students who started a two-year program last week at Chattanooga State Community College to become a nuclear plant operator.
“My last job was as a laborer at the Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant, and I saw there that the people who had the best jobs — and the ones that seem to always keep their jobs — are those with the best education,” Cole said. “Education seems to be key these days and, even though I don’t know many people yet in Chattanooga, I feel like I’m going in the right direction now.”
A new employment study by the Brookings Institution underscores Cole’s career move. Seven of every 10 new jobs in Chattanooga require more than a high school education, but a majority of unemployed Chattanoogans have never been to college or received any high school certifications, Brookings reports.