CHARLOTTE, N.C. — According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, employment is a key part of long-term recovery for people overcoming substance use disorders.
Research shows obtaining and maintaining meaningful work helps establish structure, income and self-esteem, which are linked to better recovery outcomes.
This model is taking shape at the National Center on Institutions and Alternatives’ Vocational Training Center Charlotte, a nonprofit providing free, hands-on job training in HVAC-R installation and service, automotive repair and commercial driving.
The Charlotte team has trained over 900 people for careers since its opening in 2020.
NCIA VTC Charlotte program director Christine Poltawsky said their reach includes residents identified as low-income, those who are justice-involved transitioning back into the community and people unhoused or in a recovery process.
“What we’re really looking to do is reach anybody that does not have access to education and training,” said Poltawsky.
VTC Charlotte credits partnerships with the county and a local nonprofit for empowering more people facing barriers to education and workforce training.
Mecklenburg County awarded NCIA about $128,000 in opioid settlement funding for employment-related services tied to opioid recovery.
Poltawsky said those dollars are allowing them to expand workforce development reach to residents eligible for tuition-free training and support.
“Most of the people in the county that got the funds – it’s been a lot of treatment centers. So we’re excited that we’re able to target things from a different direction,” Poltawsky said.
“We are recruiting out in the community at all treatment centers, Charlotte Rescue Mission and others. It’s just allowed us to serve a larger number of their clientele because we have a different funding stream that we can bring them in under,” Poltawsky said.
In 2023, VTC Charlotte partnered with the rescue mission, an organization offering residential recovery programs at no cost for individuals at the intersection of homelessness and addiction. This includes individuals overcoming alcohol and drug addiction.
The rescue mission is connecting residents to career training and support at VTC Charlotte.
“We started conversations on how we could refer people in their program, in order for them to continue to build on what they’re working on,” Poltawsky said.
“They have steps they need to follow to move forward. What our program offers to the residents there is a pathway to get some industry-recognized credentials and then make some money so they can start paying the rent and move forward through that step process. Along with everyone else who comes through our doors, we’re just giving second chances,” Poltawsky said.
Since 2023, over 50 rescue mission participants have enrolled in NCIA training programs, thanks to support from the opioid settlement funds. As a result of these partnerships, VTC Charlotte said many of the graduates are now working full-time jobs.
Graduate Kasey Lester was referred through the rescue mission and recently graduated from the HVAC program.
Lester said the workforce training has been a gamechanger for getting a job and for others seeking second chances.
Kasey Lester recently graduated from NCIA VTC Charlotte and credited its partnership with Charlotte Rescue Mission for opening new career doors. (Spectrum News 1/Jennifer Roberts)
“I wasn’t aware of the opportunities that were up to grab, the things I could pursue, do for myself to get me out my regular routine of life,” Lester said. “That I could branch out and have more stability, more freedom, peace, knowledge. Through the Charlotte Rescue Mission, it has opened many doors.”
The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services estimates over 1.4 million adults struggle with a substance use disorder.
From 2000 to 2022, NCDHHS reports over 36,000 North Carolinians died from drug overdoses.
Poltawsky said the data speaks to the importance of connecting those in recovery programs to workforce pipelines, so they can create lasting stability beyond treatment.
“It feels really good to contribute to the good news and changing somebody’s life for the positive,” Poltawsky said.
Walter Boseman is enrolled in VTC Charlotte’s HVAC-R program.
“I have an associate degree in it already, but I got in an accident years ago which led me out of the workforce,” Boseman said. “I’m going back to what I know to get me up to par with new systems being used.”
Boseman was also referred through the Charlotte Rescue Mission.
Boseman said the combination of support and workforce training has helped create a pathway he needed.
“Put me back where God wanted me from the beginning,” Boseman said. “It’s working together just like an air conditioning unit. I’m just moving on up.”
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Jennifer Roberts
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