Floyd County Prison Inmates Earn Welding & CDL Certificates

Fourteen inmates at Floyd County Prison earned high school equivalency diplomas, five completed welding certification, and five obtained Class B commercial driver's licenses through a partnership with Georgia Northwestern Technical College. The prison held a graduation ceremony May 29.

Steven Roebuck, who served nearly seven years at Floyd County Prison across two separate incarcerations, spoke to the graduates. He now holds four state professional licenses, serves as the prison's chaplain, and works as water and sewer maintenance supervisor for the City of Cave Spring.

"You now hold keys to opportunities that you didn't have before," Roebuck told the graduates. "The possibilities are now endless."

The welding graduates earned certificates in shielded metal arc and flux core welding. The CDL graduates received Class B commercial truck driving licenses. Truist Bank funded both programs.

GNTC has offered courses at Floyd County Prison in CDL licensure, welding, high school equivalency diplomas, and basic business skills. The programs align with Gov. Brian Kemp's push to help former offenders reintegrate, including legislation that makes it easier for those without driver's licenses to obtain identification cards and proof of training completed while incarcerated.

Judith Gilmer, a correctional officer at Floyd County Prison, gave opening and closing remarks. "Learning is a never-ending sequence of events," Gilmer said. "Whatever you want out of life, you now know that you can achieve it through the same hard work that you used to earn your certificates."