Cecil College Magazine 2026 - Magazine - Page 22
Left to right: Jerry Oakes (Service Manager), Bill Tuerke (Operations Manager),
Jim Sellers (Owner - 3rd Generation), John Davis (Service Dispatcher), Justin
Iwersen (HVAC Service Technician)
Empowering Students Through
OPPORTUNITY & EDUCATION
Cecil College is dedicated to connecting education with real-world opportunities
in industries vital to the regional economy. Through immersive, hands-on learning
experiences, the College equips students with practical, job-ready skills and prepares
them for meaningful employment. Central to this mission is a strong network of
partnerships with local employers, ensuring students can confidently transition from
the classroom into skilled, in-demand careers.
For Hillside Heating and Cooling,
however, the scholarship program is not
about immediate returns. The goal is to
give back to the community and create
pathways for students interested in trade
careers.
A longtime partner in this effort is Hillside Heating and Cooling, an awardwinning HVAC company serving residential and commercial customers across
New Castle County, Delaware; Cecil County, Maryland; and Southern Chester
County, Pennsylvania. With more than 70 years of service, Hillside understands the
importance of developing skilled tradespeople.
That philosophy is echoed by Jim Sellers,
third-generation owner of Hillside
Heating and Cooling, who has long
championed the trades as a viable and
rewarding career path. “For well over 20
years, I have been telling people younger
than me that the future of employment
is in our trades. If you can fix something,
you will work forever. I used to say
that, eventually, mechanics and people
who can fix things will be the six-figure
earners in our communities. I wasn’t sure
when that would come to fruition, but
here we are.”
That commitment is reflected in the Hillside Heating and Cooling Scholarship,
established through the Cecil College Foundation. The scholarship provides three
awards for up to $1,800 each for students enrolled in Cecil College’s NCCER HVAC/R
program who are pursuing training that leads to employment. NCCER is the National
Center for Construction Education and Research, a program with a 168-hour
curriculum that prepares students for careers as HVAC/R mechanics and installers,
covering the essential skills needed to safely install, maintain, and troubleshoot
HVAC/R systems.
20 | CECIL COLLEGE MAGAZINE
