The pharmacy-technician basic-skills-plus program class begins in June for students who would like to complete their high-school equivalency at the same time as preparing to enter the job market as a certified pharmacy technician.

BCCC is seeking applicants for the program through which students enrolled in general educational development courses at BCCC will be enrolled in the pharmacy-technician certification course at the college.

Classes will be held Mondays and Wednesdays, beginning June 4 and ending Aug. 30, on the BCCC campus.

A pharm-tech human resources-development class will be conducted from 6 p.m. until 9 p.m. June 4-27. This instruction will give students the chance to earn their Career Readiness Certification, a credential often required or preferred by prospective employers.

Basic skills and pharm-tech classes will be held from 2:30 p.m. until 5:30 p.m. and 6 p.m. until 9 p.m., July 9 through Aug. 30.

Teachers of these classes will work together to give students context-based and career-focused instruction that will prepare students to pass both the GED and pharmacy-technician certification exams.

Class work will include dosage calculations, intravenous flow rates, drug compounding, dose conversion, dispensing of prescriptions, inventory control and reimbursement procedures.

Most fees and costs associated with this program will be waived or paid through scholarships. Students will be expected to buy the pharm-tech textbook, available at the BCCC bookstore before the first night of class at the expected cost of $70 each.

Once students receive their GEDs, they will have specific job-related skills that will allow them to immediately enter the work force as certified technicians rather than having to wait for job-specific classes after they have completed their high-school equivalency work, according to Laurie Weston, BCCC’s basic-skills coordinator.

This program is the second basic skills-plus curriculum offered by BCCC. The first class of students is currently scheduled to complete its GED and certified nursing assistant I program in July.

Since 2010, BCCC and 34 other community colleges have been approved to offer basic skills-plus programs that prepare students in 85 different career pathways.

The program works by providing employment skills, job-specific occupational and technical skills and developmental education, if needed, to students enrolled concurrently in a GED program.

To register for the class or for more information, interested persons should contact Laurie Weston at 252-940-6322 or Penelope Radcliffe at 252-940-6325 in BCCC’s basic-skills department.