Vol State Offering Clay County Residents New Class Opportunities

Vol State will be offering new adult education classes in Clay County.

Classes will be available in-person, online, and with a hybrid option. Vol State Vice President for Economic Development and Regional Centers Nicholas Bishop said they want classes to be as convenient as possible.

“When you’re trying to raise a family and put food on the table, and work a job, adding that additional time of going to class and trying to prepare for your HiSET exam, that’s tough,” Bishop said. “And then you add that travel time on top of that, that’s just another barrier, an obstacle.”

Bishop said that the program is meant to help build the individuals who come seeking education as well as the county. He said that Clay is one of the remaining distressed counties in the state and that education may help recruit investment.

“As companies look to relocate there, or even look to possible expansions in the region, it helps to have a workforce that has credentials as far as high school diplomas and beyond,” Bishop said. “And so we’re looking at it two-fold. We want to help the individual, but we’re also trying to help build up the community.”

Bishop said that Vol State picked up Clay County through the Tennessee Department of Labor Workforce Development earlier in July. He said Vol State was given several rural counties with the hopes of improving enrollment and activity for adult education.

“Once they do obtain their high school diploma, we can transition them to community college, industry, and technical certificate programs, TCATs, and also other workforce development programs,” Bishop said. “That will help those individuals progress and transition into the workforce.”