Constructing and disseminating model, sharable curriculum and workforce development resources based on national industry standards and certifications
Leading industry, education, and workforce development partners in creating programs and services that meet immediate and long-term employer needs while connecting diverse communities and citizens through transportation projects and workforce development efforts
Executive Director
Jess spent the first several years of his career in the transportation industry working with large truck fleets where he honed his technical training and experience in supervising heavy-duty vehicle maintenance facilities. In addition, he gained six years experience working for the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro), where he expanded his expertise in alternative fuels and transit bus shop supervision.
Jess was awarded the “Full Circle Award” by Green Technology, a non-profit initiative designed to inform government efforts toward sustainability. This award recognizes individuals who have started their career paths at the community college level and are now giving back to the college community. He was also named LATTC’s CTE Faculty of the Year in 2011.
Jess is currently serving as Chair for the California Council on Diesel Education and Technology. This council was formed by the California Air Resources Board and provides training on emission regulations enforcement for on-road diesel vehicles. He also serves on the Board of Directors of the Southern California Regional Transit Training Consortium-a consortium comprised of multiple transit bus companies and community colleges that focuses on the technical training of bus maintenance technicians and other personnel.
Curriculum Developer
Ken Bolding is a Curriculum Developer at the Transportation Workforce Institute. Ken has created transportation-related training materials for TWI and Los Angeles Trade-Technical College since 2012. Recent courses include maintenance and repair training modules for the Ansaldo-Breda P2550 railcar, Emergency Response for Rail Controllers, and HASTUS software training for Metro University. He has previously worked as an Instructional Designer for the Penn State Institute for the Study of Adult Literacy, where he designed and coded computer-based training modules for the R.O.A.D. to Success, a project designed to provide low-literate Truck Drivers with the reading skills necessary to pass the Commercial Driver’s License Examination (CDL).
During his 20-years as a Curriculum Developer, Instructional Designer, Technical Writer, and Corporate Trainer, Ken has created innovative training solutions in industries as diverse as financial software (Intuit), payroll processing (Intuit Payroll), wireless telephony (AT&T Wireless), and temporary staffing (Roth Staffing Companies). He routinely achieves greater than 90% top-box scores for his self-paced multimedia modules and is a recipient of the Intuit Jordan award for excellence as an Instructional Designer, as well as numerous awards for public speaking. He is an experienced filmmaker and multimedia creator, who has worked on more than 50 film projects, including instructional and corporate videos, narrative shorts, web series, and feature films.