BEDFORD – Sheriff Mike Branham reported there were 170 inmates in the jail Tuesday morning, of those 134 were males, 36 females, one Level 6 felon, eight Department of Correction holds, and one parole hold.
“The jail count is at 270. It’s at 95 percent capacity,” said Sheriff Branham. “This same time two years ago we were at 150 inmates.”
Sheriff Branham also said the Skills for Success program, a manufacturing training boot camp that provides both classroom and hands-on learning for entry-level work will see their first graduation on Monday.
“We will have 11 male inmates graduating with four different certifications,” added Sheriff Branham.
The program originally was created through Purdue University’s Manufacturing Extension Partnership to provide manufacturing training to all demographics, customizing the curriculum to what employers and managers specifically wanted. The program is a manufacturing training boot camp that provides both classroom and hands-on learning for entry-level work. Its classes cover subjects such as workplace etiquette, Occupational Safety and Health Administration certification, and blueprint reading.
The program is offered at no cost to the inmates.
Joe Timbrook, Director of Career Development at the Lawrence County Workforce Coalition is overseeing the project.
Sheriff Branham hopes to offer two more classes to the inmates before the end of the year – one for the women and another for the men.
The sheriff also reported the jail feasibility study is complete.
