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NORTHWEST TECHNICAL INSTITUTE is the only career and technical institute in the state. Its mission is to change lives through education, training and development by giving you the skills you need for some of our area’s best-paying careers. NWTI has five types of programs: diploma programs, fast-track business and industry training, secondary programs for high school students, community education and a tuition-free adult education program offering GED, English as a second language and civics classes. Diploma programs at NWTI include allied health, business and information systems and industrial arts. The Institute’s allied health programs include practical nursing, phlebotomy, certified nursing assistant and surgical technology. The practical nursing program plays an important role in supplying our area with trained nursing professionals. The surgical technology program trains students to work with a surgeon or registered nurse in an operating room. If a future in business is for you, NWTI’s professional business services prepares students for careers in clerical and administrative positions or for work in medical offices or corporate insurance departments. The Institute’s information systems courses can give you the skills you’ll need for a career in computer repair, network support or network administration. Industrial arts are in high demand in Northwest Arkansas and NWTI has programs in several fields including welding, electronics, medium and heavy duty truck technology, automotive service, ammonia refrigeration and industrial maintenance technology. Since many local industries are partners with NWTI, they work closely with the Institute to make sure its programs provide each student with the skills and experience needed to start and build a career. For example, the Institute is partnering with Tyson Foods to develop a new ammonia refrigeration and industrial maintenance technology center at NWTI’s Springdale campus. NWTI can learn both basic and advanced welding techniques and gain the knowledge needed to work in a variety of industries. If you enjoy working with cars, you might be interested in NWTI’s automotive service technology or medium and heavy duty truck technology programs. There is a shortage of trained diesel technicians in Arkansas and across the nation. NWTI’s program equips students with a solid foundation in diesel technology, and give them the knowledge and experience they need to start a successful career. Diesel technicians are trained to do the repairs and maintenance needed to keep big rigs rolling and heavy construction machinery moving. Nearly 100 percent of students in the medium and heavy truck technology program are employed in their field after graduation. Both medium and heavy truck technology and automotive service technology are among the programs available to high school juniors and seniors. NWTI’s secondary classes are free and may count as high school credit. Other programs open to high school juniors and seniors include welding, medical professions education, criminal justice, computer science, certified nursing assistant and dental assisting. Some diploma programs at NWTI may take several months to complete, but the school’s Business and Industry training gives you another option to fast track your career. It offers hands on and e-learning short-term training on electrical systems, motor controls, programmable logic controllers, pneumatics, hydraulics, CNC machine operation, vibration analysis, laser alignment and more. Training is at your own pace with flexible days and times. ARC flash, heavy equipment, OSHA 10 and OSHA 30 safety training, and computer and soft skills classes are also available. For more information, call 479-306-7969. To learn more about NWTI’s accreditation, certifications, curriculum and tuition scan the code or visit http://nwti.edu. Ammonia refrigeration and industrial maintenance are huge demands in our area and offer high-paying careers. Trained technicians are responsible for keeping the vital systems and machinery used in manufacturing and food production running. When it’s complete, NWTI’s state-of-the-art center will have a 19,000 square foot lab complete with live and static ammonia systems that students will learn to operate. Students interested in industrial maintenance can take advantage of the Institute’s electronics technology program, which covers basic electronics, terminology, electronic components, circuit configuration and circuit design. NWTI is the area’s training leader for another good-paying career– welding. Plans are underway for a new welding technology lab, which will be the region’s premiere welding center. Students at Council on Occupational Education, 7840 Roswell Road, Building 300, Suite 325, Atlanta, GA 30350, Telephone: 770-396-3898 / FAX: 770-396-3790, http://council.org. FAYETTEVILLE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE | 21