Our lead training facilitator was instrumental in launching MND’s virtual training programs during COVID.
If you’ve participated in one of our career training programs within the past six years, you’ll likely recognize Stephen Thomas as the face at the front of the classroom. As lead training facilitator at Maryland New Directions, Stephen has played a critical role in building the curricula for our Maritime, Transportation, Distribution, and Logistics (MTDL) and Commercial Transportation Careers (CTC) programs and guides a new cohort of clients through these courses each month.
Stephen is uniquely qualified for his role, to say the least. In addition to his passion for public service, his background includes experience in theatre, customer service, teaching, and even video game design, which have all served him and MND well in helping our clients navigate their own career journeys.
In March 2020, when the pandemic forced MND to immediately shut down our in-person training sessions, it was largely Stephen’s dedication and ingenuity that helped us get back up and running within just six days. We were in the middle of our three-week CTC program at the time, and Stephen jumped into action and quickly created online surveys to ensure our clients could still complete their training and take the CDL learner’s permit exam virtually.
Working tirelessly over the next few weeks, Stephen fully transitioned our training programs online by customizing a virtual classroom on Moodle – an open-source learning platform many teachers use – and quickly got to work assisting clients with tech support as he learned to navigate the system himself. Drawing on his knowledge of gaming, Stephen integrated video games, videos, and other interactive content into the trainings – making each session engaging and effective while learning remotely.
“It took a significant amount of work to prepare the Moodle classroom. I did it at home on graphics software, and spent hours searching YouTube for the best videos. I even recorded and narrated some of the educational videos myself,” he says. “But it’s all worth it. It helps our clients find an awesome job so they can provide for themselves and their families. I couldn’t ask for a more rewarding career.”
Considering his own career journey, Stephen knows first-hand what it’s like to want more out of a job. When the video game company he was working for closed, he knew he wanted his next role to be more meaningful.
“I made a promise to myself that I would work for a non-profit organization,” he says. “I knew I was done with the ‘sorry, that’s just business’ culture that I experienced at my last jobs.”
After dipping his toes in the non-profit realm with AmeriCorps and helping with fire response and first aid safety in Baltimore, Stephen found himself at MND. “Executive Director Grace Lee took a chance hiring me as a job coach. I started off helping people who had recently been released from prison, or were about to be,” says Stephen. “I assisted them with job searches, writing resumes, and making sure they had a secure plan in place.”
Stephen has served as MND’s lead trainer since 2015 – planning, developing, facilitating, and reporting on all training curricula. As part of his role, he connects with MND’s hiring partners to see what type of workers and skillsets they are looking for, and from there, he develops trainings based on their employee “wish lists” and criteria. “Our special partnerships with employers help us make placements while ensuring our clients are hired—it’s a real win-win,” he adds.
When planning MND’s different training agendas, Stephen truly goes above and beyond to ensure clients get the very most out of the courses. With his extensive research and program preparation, he has obtained certifications for workforce services such as operating a lift truck, working in a warehouse, and more. “If I understand the logistics of what we’re training these people to do, I can do everything I can to help them be successful,” he shares. “When I know what the client is looking for, I can make the training process easier for them, or steer them in the direction they need to go in order to achieve their goal.”
As the aftermath of the pandemic begins to settle, Stephen looks forward to embracing a new hybrid training model for our programs. “We do everything that we can to prepare our clients for jobs, so if the hybrid option is the best solution moving forward, then we’ll take the necessary steps to offer that in the future,” he shares. “My goal at MND is to set our clients up for success in a way that works best for them. That’s how we make people’s lives better.”
