Eleven students recently graduated from Surry Community College’s Truck Driver Training Program at the Yadkin Center.
The graduates include Daniel McNeil of Mount Airy; Isaiah Johnson and Matthew Strickland of Pilot Mountain; Marco Secundino of Elkin; Taylor Galyean of Lowgap; Luis Anorve of Jonesville; Mike Clendenen of Traphill; Bradley Collins of Pinnacle; Michael Wright of Winston-Salem; Cody Brown of North Wilkesboro; and James Jordon of Iredell County.
Surry Community College will be offering two sections of Truck Driver Training Classes starting in the summer. The first will run from Thursday, May 26, through Thursday, August 4, 2022. The second section will run from Monday, August 1, through Tuesday, October 4, 2022.
Median pay for truck drivers is $47,100 per year, according to the United States Department of Labor. Drivers with experience can make more than $50,000.
With a shortage of up to 12,000 truck drivers in North Carolina and as many as 200,000 nationally, CDL-certified drivers will easily be able to find jobs. The U.S. Department of Labor says the profession is expected to keep growing – by 6 percent during 2020-2030.
“There are currently job openings for truck drivers locally and nationally. We developed this program as a direct response to the requests from local truck driving representatives who need skilled applicants to fill job vacancies,” said SCC President Dr. David Shockley.
The SCC Truck Driver Training Program teaches proper driving procedures, safe driver responsibility, commercial motor vehicle laws and regulations, and the basic principles and practices for operating commercial vehicles. The coursework includes motor vehicle laws and regulations, map reading, vehicle maintenance, safety procedures, daily logs, defensive driving, freight handling, security and fire protection.
Highway driving training exercises and classroom lectures are used to develop the students’ knowledge and skills. Graduates are qualified to take the Commercial Driver’s License Test and are employable by commercial trucking firms. They may also become owner-operators and work as private contract haulers.
Special admission requirements include official driving record; physical examination; reading placement test score of 40 or higher; disclosure form; high school transcript; and drug testing.
For more information about SCC’s Truck Driver Training Program, contact Dr. Douglas Underwood at (336) 386-3584 or underwoodd@surry.edu. The tuition is $1,876.00. You may qualify for a tuition scholarship. To see if you are eligible, please visit www.surry.edu/funding.
Eleven students graduated from Surry Community College’s Truck Driver Training program. (Front row, left to right) Instructor Charles Perry, Matthew Strickland, Cody Brown, Taylor Galyean, Marco Secundino, James Jordon and Lead Instructor Brandon Cockerham. (Back row, left to right) Instructor Perry Wagoner, Daniel McNeil, Bradley Collins, Luis Anorve, Isaiah Johnson, Michael Wright and Mike Clendenen.