NH Correctional Industries celebrates success of Apprenticeship Program

CONCORD, NH – The New Hampshire Department of Corrections Correctional Industries Program is excited to announce its first recipients of apprenticeship certificates thanks to a new program offered in our correctional facilities. For the first time, four individuals at the New Hampshire State Prison for Men in Concord and the New Hampshire Correctional Facility in Berlin were awarded U.S. Department of Labor Journeymen apprenticeships for furniture and upholstery. They completed and graduated from a 6,000 hour program to become eligible.

The certification program rolled out in 2017 becoming the first nationally recognized certificate program in New Hampshire Correctional Industries. It will provide the graduates with an advantage in establishing careers in these areas once they are released from the Department’s custody.

The names of the recipients are David Burns, Dewayne Miles, Jeffrey Paquin, and Malcolm Robinson.

Corrections Commissioner Helen E. Hanks offered her congratulations to the recipients and presented them with their certificates at the upholstery shops in Concord and Berlin.

Commissioner Hanks said, “Many individuals in our custody are eager to learn a trade and it’s our goal to provide them with the tools and resources to succeed in order to prompt successful re-entry to the community and a path to a living wage career.”

In 2016 (latest numbers available), the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projected a 3.5 percent growth in employment in this upholstery field with a 1 percent growth in wages.

The Department anticipates an increase in enrollment as more apprentices become masters of their trade. Our goal is to increase the apprenticeship programs available based on other Industry shops in the months and years ahead as well as to implement new Industries.