What if the skills students learn in high school could be available to any adult in the Mat-Su Valley? What if someone is ready to work, or ready to start over, but needs some training? Wasilla High School principal Jason Marvel decided to answer these questions.
A $75,000 Catholic Social Services grant created the opportunity in 2024. Its goal was to prepare Ukrainian refugees to enter the workforce. Marvel jumped at the chance. Wasilla High and industry created the nonprofit Warrior Nation Community School with the grant funds.
Marvel drew on two models: The national skilled labor certificates that students in his school were earning and the community schools that were used in the Mat-Su decades ago.
The program expanded into the Wasilla Workforce Development Initiative, or WWDI with help of a grant from the Mat-Su Health Foundation. WWDI serves Mat-Su residents 18 and older with hands-on training that leads to jobs.
Experienced certified career and technical teachers instruct in five areas.
Marvel says WWDI tailors nationally recognized training to the needs of the community. He says the best way to do that is through partnerships with local businesses, the VFW Post 9365, and the City of Wasilla.
Two of those partnerships show up in the classroom: the electrical program and the healthcare pathway.
The pre-apprenticeship electrical program is taught by Northern Industrial Training. It is NC3 certified. It provides a nationally recognized industry credential. And it’s a lead-in to advanced training.
The healthcare pathway partners with the US Career Institute. Students leave certified and job-ready as patient care or pharmacy technicians.
Marvel points to the results. WWDI has enrolled 65 students. Two-thirds have landed jobs. And the healthcare pathway has almost 80 people on its waiting list.
Classes are held in the evening at Wasilla High School through an agreement with the school district. They follow the school calendar.
Tuition is $50 per course. Scholarships can cover the cost of certifications.
Dinner is provided. Free on-site childcare with certified teachers is offered.
WWDI plans to include a permanent home for the program.
“We will grow as much as our community needs us to grow,” Marvel says.
Fall registration is open. Go to wasillaworkforce.org or call 907-373-7878 for course schedules and information.
Monday is Drive Your Tractor to Work Day in Palmer. The tractors will leave the Fairgrounds at 9 a.m. After parading through town, they will park at the Downtown Pavillion.
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That’s it for today and the news on Page Two on Friday, May 1, 2026.
[Photo courtesy of Wasilla Workforce Development Initiative]