MONTANA – Forest Service Job Corps National Director Jerry Ingersoll presented Anaconda Job Corps Civilian Conservation Center, Anaconda, Montana, with the National Director’s “Center of the Year” Honor Award in a virtual ceremony on Feb. 17, 2022. The Center of the Year award is the highest honor awarded by the National Director and reflects Anaconda Job Corps’ outstanding performance and successful efforts to educated and train young men and women, allowing them to transform their lives for the better.

“What makes this award so special is that the center that gets this award has shined in every award category,” said Ingersoll. “Center Director Ray Ryan and his staff exhibit the highest levels of integrity, professionalism, creativity and collaborative spirit with the National Forest System, with fellow CCCs and with external partners.”

Anaconda CCC successfully navigated the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic with unusual dexterity. Center staff stepped up and successfully took on the new challenge of serving its students in distance learning, maintaining a high enrollment percentage. Anaconda was a leader amongst Job Corps centers nationwide in opening up its doors to welcome back students to campus when the Department of Labor moved to safely reopen centers. Anaconda developed an air-tight reintroduction plan that met all of DOL’s rigorous standards.

Anaconda Job Corps Center has always and continues to shine due to the culture of the center and its staff’s commitment to preparing students for full-time employment and being contributing members of the communities where they live and work.