JAY — Spruce Mountain Adult & Community Education is preparing to launch its first commercial driver’s license, or CDL, training class this summer as the program completes a final licensing requirement and considers a proposed agreement to acquire a training truck.

Robyn Raymond, director of Spruce Mountain Adult & Community Education, updated the RSU 73 board June 25 on the planned program. She said the instructor was completing the Train the Trainer program.

“It’s the last part that we need for our licensing to become a commercial truck driving site,” Raymond said. “We’re looking forward to having our inaugural CDL class this summer.”

The new offering would give local students a path to commercial driver training through Spruce Mountain Adult & Community Education, expanding the program’s workforce credential options while the district works to secure a truck for hands-on instruction.

Raymond said Jason Gibbs, a local business owner and community member, has proposed a seller-financing agreement that could help the program acquire a truck.

Gibbs inherited his father’s estate after his death, Raymond said, and views the proposed arrangement as a way to give back to the community.

“He keeps saying to me, ‘This is exactly what my dad would have wanted,’” Raymond said.

The proposed agreement remained in the works as of the June 25 meeting, and the board did not act on it.

The CDL class would join other workforce and completion programs offered through Spruce Mountain Adult & Community Education. Raymond reported that the program recognized 23 high school completion graduates and 18 workforce students during its June 7 graduation ceremony.

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