The students arrived early and stayed late.

They demonstrated the eagerness and hope parents sometimes see in offspring -- a sight that leaves mothers and fathers grateful but sometimes a tad worried about the near inevitability of disappointment.

The eight pupils who participated in and graduated from the first offering of Quick Start classes at Virginia Western Community College were no starry-eyed children. They knew firsthand life's hard knocks.

But after learning about Quick Start, a tuition-free, six-week program designed to prepare adults for entry-level but promising jobs in industry, manufacturing and skilled trades, they heard a hint of the proverbial knock people say bangs but once.

"If you are looking for a new career, looking for a change, this program is a great opportunity," said Yvette Jones, 44.

Jones, a high school graduate, was primed for change after closing a day care center she had run for years. She heard about Quick Start at church.

Leah Coffman and Chuck Terrell are Workforce Development Specialists at VWCC. They modeled Quick Start's curriculum in Roanoke after a similar program developed by John Tyler Community College.

Coffman said area manufacturers are worried about finding workers savvy enough to succeed in technology-driven production jobs. Companies thus provided one impetus for Quick Start. She said Ted Melnik, chief executive officer of Novozymes Biologicals in Roanoke County, and others told VWCC their companies need a pipeline of skilled workers to fill openings as they occur.

"They're looking for people who have good reading and comprehension skills, basic math skills and an ability to use logical and analytical thinking in problem solving," Coffman said. "If they have these aptitudes and abilities, an employer can train them about the specifics of a job."

Work ethic

In addition, she said, employers in the region long for personal qualities that seem to be waning. They want workers who will show up for work on time, take sick days only when they're sick and understand that their employers need to make a profit.

This first class of Quick Start students exhibited the sort of work ethic companies seek, Coffman said.

"What we have found to be inspiring is the level of commitment these students are demonstrating," she said.

VWCC developed the curriculum in collaboration with five regional companies: Conwed; CCS Inc.; Integrated Textile Systems; Tecton Products; and Novozymes Biologicals. Each company has pledged it will, at the least, offer graduates a chance to interview for a job opening.

And, if a hire is made, the grad is promised at least $12 an hour to start.

Quick Start does not promise a job. But it helps open doors, Jones said.

"Sometimes employers don't want to give you a chance," she said. "This time, there is a chance."

Is Quick Start enough?

Roanoke businessman Jay Foster doesn't think so.

His company, SoftSolutions, designs and sells software that helps manufacturers track the performance and improve the efficiency of production processes. Foster has played a key role in helping regional manufacturers, especially those with high-tech operations, communicate about common problems and solutions.

Foster helped moderate an Oct. 5 meeting at Virginia Tech's Center for High Performance Manufacturing. The gathering's participants were educators, work force and vocational officials and representatives of several area manufacturers, including Graham White Manufacturing, Tecton Products, Volvo Trucks North America, R.R. Donnelley and Yokohama Tire.

The group worked to identify strategies designed to help fill the looming void created by retiring baby boomers. Foster opened the meeting with a reference to the hiring challenges ahead.

"The storm is still kind of out on the horizon, but it's going to be a wicked storm when it gets here," he said.

Several participants decried the lingering stigma about manufacturing work and the tendency of parents, peers and guidance counselors to steer children away from jobs in the sector.

"You think about manufacturing, and there's an image of some dirty, noisy job," said Lloyd Enoch, director of career and technical education for Roanoke city public schools. "These are not dirty jobs anymore."

Not all of them, anyway.

During the discussion, the Quick Start program came up. In an e-mail before the meeting, Foster said he supported Quick Start but saw it as one comparatively small levee against the coming storm.

"It's an excellent start, but it's not enough," he said. "It's my understanding that one-third of the manufacturing work force will be retiring over the next five years. We don't have nearly enough qualified workers in the pipeline to replace these highly skilled, experienced workers."

Dan Hughes, manager of manufacturing for Graham White, said some regions in other states have implemented effective marketing strategies, organized by manufacturing associations, to educate parents, teachers and students about how the industry has changed and become more tied to technology. He said more manufacturers in the Roanoke and New River valleys must get involved and contribute time and money to the cause.

"Until it hurts, businesses won't react and then we'll all be scrambling and it will be too late," Hughes said.

If the demand for skilled workers, or those with enough smarts to be trained, is so high and getting higher, why haven't entry-level wages increased in the region? The $12 an hour promised to successful Quick Start grads is more than many regional manufacturers pay entry-level workers.

One participant said his company typically offers $10 an hour to start.

Rob Akers, chief operating officer for the National Tooling and Machining Association, said he believes $10 an hour is too low to attract skilled workers or employees savvy enough to learn the skills required by modern manufacturing.

"Ten dollars an hour? Good luck," he said. "That's why they're not finding anyone."

These days, he said, at an hourly rate of $10, an employee would have to work four hours or more just to fill their vehicle's gas tank.

Moving on up

Part of Quick Start's appeal for its pioneer class was the prospect of a career with a future, a job with the promise of rungs to climb and rewards for know-how, company loyalty and dedication.

"My goal is to finish this program and get a job that allows me to grow in the company," Jones said. "I'll come back to school, get more training, further my career."

Carolyn Poindexter learned about Quick Start from a television ad. She applied, interviewed and was admitted. She said she has worked in customer service, done warehouse work and driven an 18-wheeler for six years.

"I feel like I am a motivated person, and once I commit myself to something I stick with it," she said.

Eric Brown once worked an hourly wage job at Elizabeth Arden. Recently, he has been unemployed. The program has given him hope, he said.

"I'd like to get a job and move up in the company and, if possible, get more schooling," Brown said. "Someday, I'd like to branch off and start my own company."

Andy Bishop, a research and development engineer for Plastics One in Roanoke County, has been a popular Quick Start instructor.

"I've been so impressed with these people," he said. "They've come so far. When classes end, they don't want to leave. They're so engrossed. They're like a sponge."

Plastics One will participate when a second Quick Start session comes together in January.

Mid-way through the first six-week program, Poindexter said she had been intellectually stimulated and challenged by the class.

"By the time they finish with us, I am going to feel like a whole new person," she said.

Jones sounded confident.

"I believe we are putting our all into this," she said. "We have set a goal and we are determined.

"One of those jobs belongs to me and I am going to put forth the effort in the program to make sure that happens."