Train Training

                 A dozen students are enrolled in a Locomotive Engineer and Conductor Basic Training Program at Bucks County Community College, the only course of its kind in this region.

                 Hysheika Clark works for the U.S. Postal Service, but given the mail agency's financial struggles, a long-term career there may not be in the cards.
                 "I need to do something that's not going anywhere for years to come," said the 31-year-old Philadelphia resident.
                 So Clark is looking to shift her career track, literally.
                 This spring, she is one of a dozen students in Mark Mattis' Locomotive Engineer and Conductor Basic Training Program at Bucks County Community College in Newtown Township.  The 65-hour introductory course, part of the college's Division of Continuing Education, is the only one of its kind in this region.
                It is designed to prepare students for railroad training programs on their path to becoming engineers or conductors for passenger/freight lines.
               Mattis, a senior training specialist with NJ Transit, has been teaching this course for more than five years.   The rail industry, he said, is not a field many people consider, but it offers good salaries and benefits and job security.
              Engineers, for instance, can earn a training salary of $40,000 to $50,000 a year.  After training and certification, which takes a couple of years, salaries can range from $60,000 to more than $100,000 annually, according to Mattis.  "And it's exciting," he said.
              The rail industry is heavily regulated and there's a lot to learn.  Employees must absorb manuals full of safety protocols and other material.  Learning the signals, say Mattis' students, is like learning a foreign language.   And beyond the basics, each railroad company has its own special instructions and information that is constantly being updated.
              "You have to have an eye for detail.  You have to be prepared.  You have to take your own responsibility.  And you've got to stay on the ball," Mattis told his students during a recent class.
              Though companies provide new hires with weeks-worth of training, Mattis' course is giving job-seekers a definite advantage and a head start, according to some former students.
              Ryan Mulkeen of Bristol took the course in 2011 and when he started looking for a job, employers were impressed to see it on his resume, he said.
              "It was a huge steppingstone," said the 33-year-old, now a freight conductor for CSX.
              Mattis' students are of various ages and backgrounds.  Some are taking the class because they like trains and want to learn more; others are looking for a career change.
             Mulkeen signed up for the class after being laid off from a previous job as a heavy-equipment operator.  He also comes from a family of railroaders.
             Bob Ireland was working in car sales, but with the economy, things were slow and he was looking for a change.
             "I wasn't having any luck finding work," said Ireland.  A friend mentioned the course and it piqued his interest.
             "It's something I never even thought about," he said.  Ireland took the class last fall, and today, the 28-year-old Newtown man is an assistant conductor for Amtrak, working the New YOrk-to-Washington D.C., route.
            "Mark's class really helped me out," he said.
            Mattis introduces students to everything from railroad operating rules to locomotive operation to air brake theory.  He also discusses how to apply and interview for a training program.
            But his biggest piece of advice for potential railroaders?  Don't be late.
            There is , after all, a train to catch.