ELLISVILLE – Jones College’s Advanced Technology Center will be offering the Certified Fiber Optic Installer course through Workforce Development during the summer session. Currently, four college employees are being trained to teach the class which would be a 40-hour course offered at the Advanced Technology Center in Ellisville.
“We’re always looking for career paths that have a family sustaining wage. Students that successfully complete the course can expect to make $20 to $27 an hour as a starting wage for this in-demand skill,” said Webb Evans, the Dean of the Advanced Technology Center at Jones College. “We know that ‘fiber’ is not going away and most of our electric cooperatives are currently installing the fiber broadband infrastructure.”
The Fiber School is currently training the “trainers” for the new course, which includes Jones College electrical technology instructor, Seth Pierce. With 20 years of experience in the electrical field before becoming a teacher, Pierce is excited about offering this new skill to help meet the growing demand in this field.
“Offering this course on the workforce side means students can take the 40-hour class and go straight into the workforce with a local contractor or the electrical cooperatives,” said Pierce. “Fiber optics is new to me; it is similar to electrical but there’s new equipment involved. However, having this fiber optic skillset may even be added to our electrical program on the academic side because technicians are still going to be needed to service and maintain the fiber optic infrastructure.”
Upon successful completion of the Fiber Optic Installation Training Course, graduates of the program will be able to layout, install or maintain fiber optic cabling systems. The fiber optic installer will be able to demonstrate a practical knowledge of fiber optic theory, codes, standards, and practices widely accepted in the fiber optics industry. This course includes classroom and hands-on-training, including cable preparations, fusion splicing, OTDR and optic loss testing in addition to all the requirements to safely and competently install, maintain and test fiber optic cabling systems.
Available Certifications after passing the exam include The Fiber School CFI (TFS CFI) Certification, Electronics Technician Association (ETAFOI) Certification and the Optical Dispersion Measurement (ODM) Certification, and all are InterNational Electrical Testing Association (NETA) recognized globally. For more information about the Certified Fiber Optic Installer course at Jones College, email Webb Evans at webb.evans@jcjc.edu or call the Jones College Advanced Technology Center at 601-477-4114.
