For over 40 years, HCC has been the school of thousands of bay area students pursuing their associates degrees. To many students, HCC is the starting point of their educational careers, but what many people around the bay area don’t know is the college’s best kept secret- the Institute for Corporate and Continuing Education, Hillsborough Community College is not just a place to start your associate’s degree, but a place to receive important job training and a place to keep refreshing yourself long after you have started your dream job.

  HCC’s Institute for Corporate and Continuing Education (also referred to as the Corporate Training Center) provides certification courses, testing services, and personal enrichment opportunities to the bay area. Many of the courses offered are ideal for students who are looking for training in specific areas, without needing a degree, while some courses offered are simply a great opportunity to relax and become more cultured.

  “We offer classes on everything from using a Mac to wine tasting and fitness classes,” said Maginda Montero, Economic and Workforce Development Coordinator of the Corporate Training Center. “Many times you can sign up for classes the day of, simply by going to TampaTraining.com and adding a course to your cart.” said Montero.

  While the main location for the Corporate Training Center is in downtown Tampa, on Davis Islands, the second and fourth floor of the HCC Collaboration studios at the Ybor city campus are also house courses offered by the training center.

  This is where many fitness courses, like Zumba, dance classes, and Pilates are offered. “The [pilates] classes are free to staff, so we actually have some staff who will go to the 45 minute pilates class on their lunch break.” said Montero.

  The HCC Collaboration Studio (Ybor) is also the home to many of the healthcare certification courses, such as certified nursing assistant and home health aid courses. The Corporate Training Center also works closely with Dale Mabry’s dental program, to certify dental assistants and provide necessary training. The classrooms are equipped with trained and certified instructors and practice ‘dummies’.

  Other courses offered by the CTC range from refresher courses on customer service and human resources, to IT classes– all of which are separate from degree seeking courses and run on a schedule that differs from the regular school semester. CTC also offers testing services at their facilities (ex. the ACT). They also offer webinars, which are very helpful to those who have a busy schedule and are unable to make it to the campus.

  The cost of these courses also differs from traditional degree seeking classes. Many of the dancing and fitness classes are pay-as-you-go, starting at $5.00 per class.

  Some students are also eligible for grants to attend training courses. For example, the CTC works closely with Tampa Workforce Alliance (unemployment office), and offers training to those who are unemployed and meet certain qualifications. This is extremely helpful to the long term unemployed, who may need a refresher on things like using Microsoft Excel, or who need to renew their certifications in able to start a new job.

  The Corporate Training Center also offers a program for kids during the summertime. The summer program is for kids and teens from ages 7-16 years old, and is a weeklong program that runs from 8am to 4:30 pm, and costs between $130.00-$150.00

  The kids program focuses on a range of subjects, allowing students to learn more about their passions in health care, culinary, chess, fashion, music, photography, among many more.

  The Corporate Training Center also gives consultation to businesses and taylors classes to the needs of companies. “If we don’t have a course on something they need, we will find somebody who is certified and who can teach the course that the company needs,” said Montero. They also rent space to businesses to give seminars and trainings.

  The Corporate Training Center has something for everybody, even if college is not for you. For a complete listing of classes, testing and certification, or for more information on the CTC, visit www.TampaTraining.com.