Written by Sharla Bardin for 19th St. Magazine, December 2020

Moore Norman Technology Center is powering up a new program for individuals interested in driving large vehicles, such as trucks and school buses.

The center will be offering classes to help people obtain a commercial driver's license, which is required to operate large vehicles, such as those used for municipalities, transportation and construction.

The program can help companies in the area with training needs for drivers and create more interest in the transportation career field, said Traci Saor, adult programs coordinator with the technology center.

“CDL drivers are one of the biggest job opportunities out there and they make good money,” Saor said.

A permit test prep class set for Nov. 17 is the first class offered in the program, and courses will take place at the center’s campus at 13301 S. Pennsylvania Ave. in Oklahoma City.

Saor said classes in the program will include those with open enrollment for individuals 18 or older with a driver’s license, as well as some customized industry training.

“We’re open to creating whatever training companies need in our area,” she said.

The program also includes a driving class and a fuel management course for companies.

Some of the classes will include the use of a transportation simulator that looks like the cab of a vehicle and features monitors that can simulate driving a bus or a truck “that we can use for demonstration and work on specific skills,” Saor said.

Upcoming goals for the program include the center becoming a licensure testing site with a third-party examiner and developing a driving track near the center’s Franklin Road campus for the program, she said.

Mike Max with Silver Star Construction of Moore said the center’s new program will be a benefit to the company by offering classes close by and creating more opportunities for training employees.

“This is going to be a big thing for us,” said Max, safety director with the company. “We’ll be sending a lot of drivers to them.”

He also said the program can give employees at Silver Star Construction a way to acquire their commercial license, enhance their skills and “it gives our employees options for a different career path in the company.”

Max said the program might also help people become interested in truck driving, which is a field in need of more personnel.

He’s heard from representatives in construction and transportation who talk about a driver shortage around the country.

“Everyone’s having problems finding qualified drivers,” he said.

One of the reasons is the number of drivers retiring and the need for more people to enter the field, he said.

“It’s a very important occupation,” Max said.

Max said some of the benefits of getting into the field include improvements in the pay and equipment and the “hours of service is well regulated.

For more information about the center’s CDL classes, visit www.mntc.edu.

Check out the program

Individuals and companies interested in the new commercial driver's license program at Moore Norman Technology Center can attend an information session from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. Nov. 6 at the South Penn campus at 13301 S. Pennsylvania Ave. in Oklahoma City. The meeting will be in the Business Development Center at the campus.

Those interested in attending can contact Traci Saor at 405-801-5705.