The NESA region combines one-of-a-kind training and education facilities with personalized support services to enhance South Carolina’s nationally recognized workforce development program. The result is a well-trained, highly skilled workforce that’s ready to go to work on Day 1, and a pipeline of talent that will grow your company for years to come. In the NESA region, your workforce brings the skills and loyalty your company needs to excel. Explore the resources our region has to offer below:
Primary education is vital to the future of the workforce and here in the NESA region we take pride in preparing the next generation for future success. To accomplish this, the region has nearly 200 public and more than 25 private school options scattered throughout the nine counties we serve. There are also several institutions offering duel credit, career prep, and STEM programs to help youth develop job skills before they even graduate high school.
The South Carolina Governor's School for Science & Mathematics is a high school for academically motivated juniors and seniors pursuing studies in science, technology, engineering and math—one of only 16 specialized, residential high schools in the nation.
As the state’s largest higher education system, the SC Technical System serves more than a quarter million South Carolinians each year and educates more of our state’s undergraduates than all the other public higher education institutions combined. Dedicated to making a quality higher education both accessible and affordable, the state's technical system plays a key role in educating and training South Carolina’s workforce for needed high-skilled jobs. In addition, the system’s internationally-recognized statewide programs – readySC and Apprenticeship Carolina – work to attract new companies to the state as well as provide comprehensive workforce solutions to ensure they stay and grow here. Of the 16 technical colleges in the state, four are located in the NESA region including Florence Darlington Technical College, Horry Georgetown Technical College, Northeastern Technical College, and Williamsburg Technical College.
The NESA region is home to three university's including Francis Marion, Coastal Carolina, and Coker University's. Each of these schools have a vast array of programs to offer prospective students and a strong willingness to work with employers to develop new programs to meet their needs. Learn more about each of these universities by visiting their website.
Apprenticeship Carolina™, a division of the South Carolina Technical College System, works to ensure all employers in South Carolina have access to the information and technical assistance they need to create demand-driven registered apprenticeship programs. The program offers consultants at no cost to employers. These consultants guide companies through the registered apprenticeship development process, from initial information to full recognition in the National Registered Apprenticeship System.
The Enterprise Zone Retraining Program (EZone) offers a tax incentive for companies wanting to remain competitive by introducing new equipment and/or new technology to their facility.
If you have a facility in South Carolina with full-time production/technology first-line employees or immediate supervisors that need training on new processes and/or new equipment, EZone may be able to help. Applying is easy and once approved, the application lasts five years.
Francis Marion University’s Industrial Engineering program is the first of its kind in the region. The program is dedicated to recruiting, educating, and retaining a diverse student population by offering a curriculum that enables students to learn current industrial engineering concepts. The unique curriculum includes instruction in physics, high-level mathematics, business, and engineering. The program also features a partnership agreement with Florence-Darlington Technical College that allows students access to the manufacturing laboratory facilities housed at SiMT.
Individuals proficient in the areas of Advanced Welding Technology, Machine Tool/CNC, and Mechatronics are among the most sought after and highly paid workers in America. Employers across South Carolina expressed difficulties in accessing a steady pipeline of these highly trained workers, and in response to industry demands, Horry Georgetown Technical College developed two Advanced Manufacturing Center’s in Conway and Georgetown in order to help train these workers. The two centers offer programs in advanced welding technologies, machine tool technology, machine tool operations, and mechatronics.
PIA’s Myrtle Beach Campus is located at the International Technology and Aerospace Park, near South Carolina’s Myrtle Beach International Airport. PIA’s airport location provides an ideal atmosphere for aviation training as well as aircraft accessibility to the school’s facilities. The 26,000 sq ft facility houses classrooms, a student resource center with a computer lab and publications library, and shop areas for aircraft propulsion systems, electricity, sheet metal, hydraulics, instruments & controls, composite materials, non-destructive testing, welding, and painting.
Established in 1961, readySC™ is one of the oldest and most experienced workforce training programs in the United States. As an integral part of the South Carolina Technical College System, readySC™ develops, implements, and manages custom workforce training programs to support smooth, rapid start-up of operations. readySC™ will work with you to screen, recruit, and train employees to meet your demands and ensures that you have a ready-to-work workforce the day you open your business. The best part? Training is done at no cost to companies that commit to creating at least 10 new jobs.
SC Works offers assistance finding skilled workers, information about qualifying for tax credits, instructions on how to pay your unemployment tax and more. Through the SC Works center, the S.C. Department of Employment and Workforce, the S.C. Department of Social Services, the Commission of the Blind, Adult Education, and the S.C. Department of Vocational Rehabilitation leverage the state’s workforce system by providing services such as career guidance, job referrals, and testing and training to meet the needs of jobseekers, employers and those looking to further their careers.
The Southeastern Institute of Manufacturing and Technology (SiMT) is a 189,000 square foot advanced manufacturing center that provides the support needed by current and future industries, advancing the region’s ability to provide a highly trained workforce. Located on the campus of Florence-Darlington Technical College, SiMT exists to partner with businesses and provide training and manufacturing technology solutions. The facility contains an Advanced Manufacturing Center, 3-D/Virtual Reality Center, National Robotics Center, and offers open-enrollment, onsite, and customized training. SiMT also offers manufacturing startup assistance and consulting services. In addition, SiMT’s Manufacturing Incubator Center (MIC) offers space, infrastructure, and intellectual property to startup companies.
The Continuum is a regional center for education and training in innovative technical skills and workforce development, created through the collaboration between The Darla Moore Foundation, Florence-Darlington Technical College and Francis Marion University. The school’s mission is to provide opportunities for students through training and certifications in workforce development skills, courses that lead to 2- and 4-year degrees, dual credit courses for high school students, programs for K-12 students in science and innovation, and business incubator space.
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