NYCHA Heating Staff “Cohort 48” Graduate from Training Program
On October 18, the 48th cohort to undertake the NYCHA Heat Training Unit’s specialized 13-week course on heating and maintenance successfully completed their training program. And on November 20, the group – who call themselves “The First 48” – were officially welcomed to the ranks of NYCHA-trained Heating Maintenance Workers and Heating Plant Technicians (HPT) in a virtual graduation ceremony.
NYCHA’s Heat Training Unit, led by Administrative Housing Superintendent Anya James, is a division of the Heating Management Services Department (HMSD). The training program is taught by Instructors Dawn Blake-Carter, Fia Cook, and Albert Francis and supported by Administrative Staff Analyst Lynn Spivey. The team provides training, coaching, and professional development for new and continuing HMSD staff on how to maintain and operate the Authority’s heating equipment and machinery to ensure the safe, reliable delivery of heat and hot water to residents. The course is taught up to three times annually at NYCHA’s Sheepshead Bay Training Center and features both classroom instruction and hands-on training. It is a required course for every HPT and Heat Maintenance Worker in HMSD to ensure that they are well trained on providing these essential services.
“It’s our mission to provide an atmosphere where the trainees can learn and thrive in an environment where they feel safe,” said Ms. James. “It is not an easy task, but we work hard at ensuring that we are supporting NYCHA’s mission by training our frontline staff to be at their best to provide heat and hot water service in a safe manner to our residents. As they claim, ‘The First 48’ are truly an amazing bunch. We are so proud of them!”
“I know I passed, but it wasn’t easy,” said Robert Cooper, an HPT at Bronx River Houses and member of ‘The First 48.’ “I took the course twice. The first time, I didn’t pass. This time I studied a lot. I did a lot of reading – and I enjoyed the program more this time around too. And now I know so much more than I did when I first got here.”
Ruthanne Woods, a Heating Maintenance Worker at Smith Houses, was the top performer in “The First 48” cohort: “This class helped me be more confident in the work that I’m doing. It was very helpful, I enjoyed it, and I learned a lot of new procedures. Heating is very challenging work – there’s a lot to learn – but the heating instructors do a great job showing us those things. I am just very grateful to be a part of Cohort 48 and happy to be a part of the NYCHA family.”
For more information about the NYCHA Heat Training Unit’s specialized 13-week course on heating and maintenance – or other trainings for Operations Support Services departments, including Elevators, Emergency Management and Services, Pest Management, and Waste Management – contact NYCHA’s Knowledge Management and Training Department at KMTD@nycha.nyc.gov.
