Mellott University has been a staple at Mellott since 2015, with numerous students graduating from the program since its inception. Mellott University was originally started because of the shortage of a technically trained work force across the United States. Many well-paying positions go unfilled at equipment distributors and manufacturers due to many applicants lack of technical skills. We created Mellott University to help solve this lack of a skilled workforce problem for ourselves, our customers, our industry, and the USA. Our goal is to provide students with the hands-on experience and training needed to become competent apprentice level service technicians and plant operators within the aggregate processing industry. The future of the aggregate industry starts with Mellott! 
Leading Mellott Into the Future
Justin Mellott, Marketing & Business Intelligence Manager, who recently took over spearheading the program, had this to say, “After many years of success with our Mellott University 9-month program, Mellott is doubling down on their investment in training and development so that we can capitalize on the groundwork that has already been laid. We look to deepen our efforts not only in technical training but in Value Based Leadership and Business Technology training by hiring trainers for each of those segments. These efforts are being made to perpetuate our position as an industry thought leader and expand our commitment to our employees, customers, and other strategic partners.”
Solid Background
Les Morris, Technical Trainer, who was thrilled to join the Mellott team said, “On June 6th, 2022, I accepted my position as the Mellott Technical Trainer. In my current position I am responsible for teaching or facilitating the curriculum at Mellott University, to prepare our students for a future here with Mellott. Another responsibility of my position is aiding with each shop within Mellott to provide onboard training for new hires and developing training plans for existing employees.” Les went on to say, “We are excited for the new class of MU. We have been able to offer acceptance letters to 10 individuals and all 10 have accepted. This year’s class consist of 5 members of the service technicians and for the first time we have added 5 members of manufacturing. 9 of the 10 are high school Seniors and the 10th member is a current full-time employee. A first for the program this year is that we were able to include 2 students from Berkeley Springs High School, and the plan for the future is to include members from the Washington County School District as well.”
A Little History on Our Technical Trainer
Les was born and raised in Berkeley Springs and graduated from Berkeley Springs HS in 1991. After HS he enlisted in the US Air Force and after his first enlistment, he transferred to the 167th West Virginia Air National Guard in Martinsburg, WV. During his career he was able to fly as an Aircraft Loadmaster on the C-130, C5, and C-17 aircraft. Over the course of 25 years, Les was able to fly to 60 countries and 49 states as an Aircraft Loadmaster on the C-130, C5, and C-17 aircraft. At the conclusion of his career, he was promoted to Chief Master Sergeant and the 167th Operations Group Superintendent. In this position Les was responsible for the leading and training of approximately 200 enlisted airmen. In January of 2016 he retired from the military and continued his career as a teacher and coach at Berkeley Springs High School. Since his time in the Air National Guard was part-time, his full-time employment was as a teacher and coach in Morgan County Schools from 2000 to 2022. In 2018, he was hired to be the Berkeley Springs High School Assistant Principal and Morgan County Schools Career & Tech Education Director and he finished his career as the Berkeley Springs High School Graduation Coach and Credit Recovery Teacher.
The Future is Bright at Mellott
When asked about the Mellott University program Les said, “Our instructors at Mellott University understand our role and will do what it takes to develop the fundamental skills of our profession. These skills are specific to our operations here at Mellott, so we are able to split their 4 hours of training to 2 hours a day to hands-on training and 2 hours per day to classroom instruction. We do our best to design our course for the hands-on experience, because we believe our students learn best this way. This is an exciting time to be a part of Mellott University and the future is bright for all our students. Our students love having the opportunity to learn, and we are ready to challenge them. It’s going to be a great year!” The future of the aggregate industry is Mellott!
If you want to
be a part of a rock-solid team, apply now https://mellottcompany.com/contact-us/ and get paid to learn a trade at Mellott University.
