Ridgewater Expands Training Range for Truck Drivers
September 25, 2024
WILLMAR and HUTCHINSON, MN – To better meet the needs of a trucking industry desperate for trained drivers, Ridgewater College is expanding and upgrading its hands-on training range for truck drivers seeking their commercial driver’s license (CDL).
Thanks to a $1.5 million Targeted Capital Communities Project grant from the Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED), Ridgewater is significantly expanding its training range on the southwest side of its Willmar campus. Work is expected to be substantially complete by approximately October 1.
“We are adding 40-50 percent new space to the training area, as well as upgrading some of the current range area,” said Sam Bowen, Ridgewater College dean of Customized Training and Continued Education (CTCE). The new space will be 300 feet by 200 feet for the concrete area, plus a separate gravel area for storing vehicles. “By making better use of the space and significantly improving lighting, we will ultimately train and test more students, both non-credit students seeking short-term training and our credit-based Agriculture students who often complement their majors with the CDL credential.” Bowen said the project will also help his staff better serve employers needing to keep their drivers current as regulations change.
“Recently, our program has seen significant growth due to our partnerships with Central Minnesota Jobs and Training Services (CMJTS) and Communidades Latinas Unidas En Servico (CLUES),” Bowen explained. Both have been funding training programs for underrepresented, underserved and low-income groups. “Customized Training serves many students from those groups, specifically in the Latino, Somali and East African communities, and thus, expanding that training has been a primary goal of the project.”
CDL training has been a part of Ridgewater offerings since 2010, when written and driving test prep courses were added to the Agriculture program. Ridgewater also began offering preparation for licensure through Ridgewater’s Continuing Education division around then. Ridgewater is a licensure test site, so students can do everything they need to in one location. By partnering with industry, Ridgewater also purchased and use a CDL simulator for additional training and mobile exposure to high school and college students, as well as other prospective drivers.
“Ultimately, this project impacts the ability of students to access the training programs, because we can train practically any time of day, any day of the week,” Bowen explained. “We reduce barriers around timing of instruction. For example, we can train more corporate or industry students during daytime work hours, without impact to our Ridgewater Agriculture students who are training at the same time. We are also able to more effectively train other groups, such as underserved populations who may need to train during non-typical hours.”
Additionally, the new range offers additional flexibility for third-party CDL examinations for students, which will help students complete their licensing exams quicker than waiting for a testing time at a Department of Motor Vehicle exam station.
“The public will benefit from additional access to short-term, entry-level training programs for jobs with outstanding wage potential,” Bowen added. “The local communities and economy will benefit by having additional employees entering the workforce funnel in this critical skilled labor area that has a very high level of openings.”