Tony Kishman plays Paul McCartney in the “Live and Let Die: Tribute to Paul McCartney” band during an NECC fundraiser.

“Hey Jude,” “Penny Lane,” and “Yesterday,” are just a few of the songs to be featured at the “Live and Let Die: A Tribute to Paul McCartney,” concert on Saturday, September 9, at 7:30 p.m. at the Collins Center for the Performing Arts, 100 Shawsheen Road in Andover.

This event is open to the public. Tickets, which are $50 per person, are now on sale.

This Northern Essex Community College signature event is hosted by the NECC Foundation, Inc., The Women of NECC, and the NECC Alumni Association. Proceeds support the NECC Foundation Endowment.

“Live and Let Die,” is a symphonic tribute to musician and former Beatle Paul McCartney portrayed by Tony Kishman, who is a veteran of the Broadway hit, “Beatlemania”. Kishman has toured worldwide with other tribute productions including “Twist and Shout,” “Classical Mystery Tour,” and “All You Need Is Love”.

“Live and Let Die” features a four-piece band lead by Kishman. The audience can expect to hear in every detail, hit songs from the Beatles catalog and McCartney’s solo works.

“Tony Kishman sounds like Paul McCartney” said the late “fifth Beatle” and Beatles’ producer George Martin.

Even McCartney praised him, “Tony Kishman is a great musician,” he said.

Seating is reserved. For more information or to reserve tickets email Lori Smerdon at lsmerdon@necc.mass.edu or call 978-556-3870.

Tickets can be purchased online.

For additional information visit here.

Preview the “Live and Let Die” show at the band’s website.

Two free, grant-funded programs designed to train individuals for high-demand jobs will be available through NECC beginning in May.

Two, free, grant-funded educational programs designed to train unemployed and under-employed individuals in high-demand manufacturing positions, will be offered through Northern Essex Community College’s Center for Corporate and Community Education beginning in May.

Individuals who have graduated from high school or have a high school equivalency, are between the ages of 17 and 29 and lack the education, skills, or experience necessary to obtain a middle or high-skilled job, are eligible for either program. Participants must be able to pass eighth grade math and reading.

Both programs are funded by a federal TechHire grant to provide workforce training in.

The Quality Training Program teaches the concepts and skills needed to become a quality assurance or quality control associate. It is a six-week, 120-hour program that will run May 15 through June 22, Mondays through Thursday, 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. at NECC’s Riverwalk, 360 Merrimack St., Lawrence.

A total of 13 students will be accepted into the quality program. This program will be offered five more times over the next few years.

Students who successfully complete the program will be prepared to sit for an American Society for Quality (ASQ) certification exam. They will be trained to work as an improvement associate, internal auditor, or document control specialist quality inspector.

The Computer Numeric Controlled (CNC) Machining Program will provide both classroom and hands-on experience. The 11-week, 404-hour program is divided into a foundational skills training and technical training. The classroom training will begin May 30 and run through June 23rd, meeting 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday at Riverwalk. From June 26 through August 11, students will receive technical training at either Whittier Regional Vocational High School in Haverhill or Greater Lawrence Technical School in Andover from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

“These programs are ideal for individuals who have barriers to training whether they lack the money, the education, or the technical skills to secure a job or advance in the job they have,” said Kathy Routhier, TechHire grant coordinator.

A total of 24 students will be accepted into the CNC Program.

In addition to be able to sit the certification tests, CNC students will participate in career readiness sessions including resume writing, interviewing skills, industry tours, and a job fair.

“Advanced manufacturing is one of the cornerstones of the Merrimack Valley economy,” said George Moriarty, NECC’s executive director of workforce development. “We’re excited about preparing more local residents for jobs in these fields.”

Information sessions for both the quality and CNC programs will be offered as follows: CNC: Tuesday, April 25, 6:30 p.m. at Whittier Regional Technical High School, 115 Amesbury Line Road, Haverhill, or Tuesday, May 2, 6:30 p.m. at Greater Lawrence Technical School, 57 River Rd, Andover, MA.

Quality: Thursday, April 27, 3:30 p.m. at Valley Works Career Center, 255 Essex St, Lawrence.

For additional information or to make reservations for any of these sessions, contact Routhier, at krouthier@necc.mass.edu, or 978-659-1217.

Individuals interested in the program who want to know if they are eligible, should contact ValleyWorks Career Center at 255 Essex St., Lawrence by calling 978-722-7000 to schedule an assessment appointment.

Prospective Northern Essex Community College students who want to attend, but don’t think they’re quite ready to commit to a full certificate or degree plan, still have an option: the Bridge to College and Careers program, specifically designed to give adult English language learners a free pathway to higher education.

An offering of the school’s Center for Adult Education Programs and Preparation, the Bridge program is an intensive two-semester program designed to improve students’ English reading, writing, and math skills so they’re better-equipped to handle the Accuplacer placement test.

Those interested in exploring careers in information technology, health care or business may qualify for the Bridge to College and Careers program. A placement test is required upon registration. Registration days for fall 2017 enrollment are Tuesday, April 25 and Tuesday, May 23 from 10:30 a.m. to noon at NECC Riverwalk, 360 Merrimack Street, Building 9, Entrance K, Room 309. Classes are held Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The Bridge to College and Careers program is funded through the Richard and Susan Smith Family Foundation grant and the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education.

For more information, contact program coordinator Marsha Parinussa Flynn at mparinussaflynn@necc.mass.edu or 978-659-1279, or academic advisor Risobel Lourido at rlourido@necc.mass.edu or 978-659-1274.

Leah Mahoney of Middleton as Elizabeth, Grant Bellino of Amesbury as Roy and Ben Joyall of Groveland as Ray in the Top Notch Players’ productions of “Laundry and Bourbon” and “Lone Star.”

James McLure’s “Laundry and Bourbon” and “Lone Star” are technically two separate one-act plays, but the unique ways they capture the spirit of the American South often lead them to be shown one right after the other.

That double feature is exactly what attendees of the Northern Essex Community College Top Notch Players’ latest show will be treated to during their Spring production, which runs from April 6 – 8 and 12 – 15. All performances will begin at 7:30 p.m. and will be held at Room E155 on the Haverhill campus, 100 Elliott Street.

McLure’s “Laundry and Bourbon” takes place on a back porch in Maynard, Texas, on a hot summer afternoon, as Elizabeth and her friend Hattie gossip about the many open secrets that are so much a part of small town life… while the former tries to cope with the turmoil of her husband, who has returned from Vietnam a changed man.

“Lone Star” takes the perspective of Elizabeth’s husband Roy and his brother Ray in the cluttered backyard of a small town Texas bar. Once a local high school hero, he’s now forced to deal with the aftermath of his time in Vietnam… and the things that went on in town while he was gone.

Katie Formosi of Groveland, MA as Hattie.

While both plays deal with serious subject matter, they are primarily comedies, making great use of McLure’s signature breezy Southern dialogue.

Available at the door, tickets are $12 for general admission and $10 for students and seniors.

The production will be directed by NECC theatre and communication professor Brianne Beatrice.

For additional information, or to request sign language interpreting, contact Beatrice at bribeats@gmail.com or (781) 254-6913.

Brian MacKenna-Rice is coordinator of NECC’s Human Services Program, which has introduced a weekend option for the alcohol & drug counselor and community practitioner certificates.

Playing its role in the fight against the addiction epidemic, Northern Essex Community College has expanded two popular human services certificate programs to be offered on Saturdays and Sundays beginning in the fall of 2017.

“Northern Essex recognizes that alcohol and drug addiction is a major public health problem in America,” said Brian MacKenna-Rice, coordinator of NECC’s Human Services Program.

The new 10-month, three-semester Alcohol and Drug Counseling Certificate and the Community Support Practitioner Certificate will offer a morning and afternoon class or practicum each Saturday and Sunday for the fall and spring semesters and one morning practicum during the summer semester as well as two online courses. Classes will be offered on the Haverhill campus. Practicums will be arranged by the program coordinator.

Northern Essex will continue to offer both certificate programs during the day as well.

“There is a great need for educated, experienced clinicians to address the ongoing, growing scourge of substance use, especially the opiate and synthetic opiate crisis that is causing so much grief and loss, which affects our national health, our economy, and our family and social fabric in a very unhealthy and devastating way,” said MacKenna-Rice. “In addition, baby boomers are retiring. There is an employment void to fill.”

The weekend program was designed, in part, to accommodate individuals already working in the human services field, both entry level and higher, who have expressed interest in becoming licensed as an alcohol and drug counselor or completing the community practitioner certificates, but are constrained by work hours from attending NECC during the week, MacKenna-Rice explained.

The Alcohol and Drug Abuse Counseling Certificate prepares individuals to work as substance abuse counselors in residential programs, shelters, correctional facilities, hospitals, outpatient programs, and sober homes.

Individuals who would prefer to help provide direct client services in residential or community-based programs will hone their skills in the Community Support Human Services Practitioner Certificate.

Social and human service assistants are listed among the fastest growing occupations in the country. After completing the community support certificate, individuals can find work in shelters for the homeless, domestic violence programs, community residences, adolescent programs, independent living and vocational programs and home support services.

Both programs include a practicum in a supervised clinical setting. This gives the student first-hand experience under supervision providing them the opportunity to grow as a professional.

There is a “misconception”, says MacKenna-Rice about the role of human services practitioners. Practitioners must observe and listen with patience, tolerance, non-judgmental-attitudes, empathy, and a willingness to build trust and rapport with the client.

“We are not fix-it people, but we are guides on the journey to health and recovery,” MacKenna-Rice said.

Since the programs require practicums, students gather experience working for potential employees and vice versa. Northern Essex has had a great deal of success placing students into practicums and there is a direct correlation between those placements and getting hired by the practicum agency, according to MacKenna-Rice.

“In a recent survey of Northern Essex human services graduates we discovered that more than 80 * are working in this field…we turn out competent, ready to work individuals,” said MacKenna-Rice.

The credits from both certificate programs can be transferred into Northern Essex Associate of Science in Human Services degree program.

For additional information on these programs contact MacKenna-Rice at bmackennarice@necc.mass.edu