Bamberg Job Corps, Bamberg, SC - Bamberg, South Carolina

Melanin M.

The staff was friendly, especially Mrs. Gaines. I hope my son has a pleasant experience there.

Migo D.

Man this program changed my life all the staff had love and compassion yes this center wasn’t perfect but it’s worked out for me .. It’s pains me to see this place go this isn’t fair for the students who some don’t even have a home to go to and the staff that worked with the students everyday

Kasie F.

This place isn’t as bad as everyone says. I’m currently still a student at Bamberg Job Corps so I’m still living it up i guess. I can say there are only a few issues though and the main issue would be the students they accept in. Now i’m not saying everyone doesn’t deserve a chance but the students that come in and start acting out should be held accountable. I’ve seen plenty of students here do some crazy and wild things and get a light punishment. Another issue would be how they let students steal your stuff and when you show them proof they just simply move them out your room and don’t hold them accountable for what they did. Then they go into the new room stealing still and you move them again. And when they get to there last room they still stealing… Like it’s not making any sense to me because all your doing is putting tons of students things on the line for someone to steal them. But they love to ask if you got a lock on your stuff when they only give you a lock for your closet and not the bed dresser so you have no choice but to get your stuff stolen. I came here with tons of things and half of my underwear is gone… That’s just disgusting.. But this place is pretty decent. I wouldn’t recommend this place to anyone but if you really want to know what it means to struggle in life and try and build up from it. Also don’t be scared to ask for help!! There are plenty of staff on campus who would help you. I recommend to go to Ms. O. Johnson, Ms. Davis, Ms. Morgan, Mr. Crawford, Mr. and Mrs. Hayes, Ms. Wiggins, Mr. Shider, Ms. Haynes, Ms. Cain or even Ms. Williams. They will gladly help you if you really need help. Also it’s best for those who are new to stay to yourself because these students will show you there true colors. So if you want to make a few friends make sure you get to know them FIRST!! Let’s speak on the living space, It’s okay till your roomed with people who steal and people who smell like piss and other things i don’t even want to name… Now I understand everyone here grown and they should learn to wash they body on they own but some of these people need to be educated on how to wash. These are the same people who need to learn how to clean a room on GI nights.. Also be aware of who you tell your business too.. Staff and Students… They all messy.

Rahim M.

Raheem A. McDonald
June 13, 2023

My Experience at jobcorps

If I could give this place zero stars, I would. I’ve had the worst experience I could ever have at that bamberg center. Most of the staff there are unprofessional and are just there for a paycheck. I wouldn’t recommend this place to anyone because of the disorganization, inability to handle problems, and the unprofessional staff members.

The Recruiters do a good deal of false advertisement simply because if they told people how it really was, no one would go there. For example, they showed me pictures of another good looking campus and said that’s the center I would be going to. When I arrived to the center in 2022 during covid, I immediately found out he was lying about everything. When I was talking about it to another student, they started listing out the lies they were told by the recruiter that were the exact same lies I was told. That’s when I realized they lie to everyone. After a few weeks in the center, it didn’t seem so bad because the students were friendly. I starting having allergies. I go to the nurse office and they sent me back out along with another student that had injured his leg and told us we had to go schedule an appointment and comeback at the scheduled time. I go back to class, call them, and schedule an appointment with them for 11:30 exactly. I comeback at that time and they still sent us back. Immediately after I go to lunch because it was lunch time. When I get in the lunch line, I find all the nurses in front of everyone which was against the rules for staff and still is. After lunch they still didn’t get back to me. I ask my teacher to call the nurse so I can go up there and the nurse refused to take me. In response I go tell the center director about the nurses and he told them to do their job and that’s when they did. However, they had an attitude with me because I told their boss. With all that being said, they were rude and nasty towards me from that day forth.

Not only is there a lot of unprofessionalism, but everything there is extremely backwards. For example, we used to have lockdowns there all the time because of constant Covid outbreaks. The staff would have us confined to our rooms for however long the lock down was. Then, the staff would go home. The staff preach social distancing all the time but have us locked in a room with 3 other people wether they had covid or not. Once that outbreak was handled there would be another outbreak not long after. This is because of them having us lock down with 3 other people. The staff would always blame the student when an outbreak occurs even though they are the only ones leaving the center. Another example could be how more and more new students were getting added to the center instead of another jobcorps center and wondering why outbreaks kept happening. This is very backwards because the staff were trying to fix the problem by doing things that were causing the problem. Another example could be when the nurse staff would always hold assembly meetings in the gym to speak to us about being healthy even though most of the staff were obese including the nurses along with the cafeteria staff that continued serving us the unhealthiest food options. Sometimes the meat wasn’t thoroughly cooked. One time they even Served us pasta dipped in bacon grease, which is, in my opinion, the unhealthiest thing you could come up with. Once we did surveys about the place and all of the surveys from the students were negative. In response, the cafeteria started calling Wednesday wellness Wednesday and served pasta with chicken in it and called it chicken salad. They did have a salad bar though. This is also backwards because majority of the students have their health problems already and they get served the kind of food that causes health problems. I’ve seen students who had fast metabolism become fat there in just one month of eating jobcorps food. Most of the problems have changed sense then. Sadly, there is still a lot more that could be changed for the better.

Ceandra J.

As a parent living out of state and sending your child away from home for school can be both terrifying and anxious. But, I can say that the transition for both my daughter and I was very pleasing. After researching other centers, we chose Bamberg Job Corps Center, because of the down home family fill and the staff were so welcoming and helpful to
answer all questions and concerns that we had. I truly appreciate the love, attention and encouragement shown towards my daughter and entire family, and if it were not for this program, I don't know what my daughter would have done. Thanks to Eric Jones, Mr. Hamilton, Mr. Sherman, Ms. Merand, Mr. Green, Mrs. Williams and Mrs. Gatson for your patience and dedication in training our youth! May God continue to bless you all and continue to guide you!

Julia W.

Excellent facility and program for those that want to put in the effort to succeed in life. Not only is a list of trades taught, life skills and employability skills are taught there as well. As a student, you get free education- both vocationally and academically if needed, free meals, free laundry services, free room and board. You come out with a certification in your vocation, and assistance in whichever direction you'd like to go (job placement, college, military, advanced training). ALL FOR FREE!
Quite obviously, the people that are complaining are the ones who did not go to the program for the right reasons. You get out of it what you put into it. I highly recommend the program for anyone wanting to better themselves and become skilled in your trade, and don't mind working to get there.

MzKeysh M.

I have encountered some of the most unprofessional group of folks at this center. From Nurse Huggins, her nurse supervisor, the IT program instructor Mr John, and others…all terrible. I’ve known several people who went to job corps at other locations in Georgia, Kentucky and New Jersey, and heard nothing but raving reviews for those locations. Unfortunately, the Bamberg center is plagued with staff with negative attitudes and ghetto mentality and who are only there for a check. It’s very sad that they are the supposed “role models” for youth who really need guidance. Shame, shame, shame on every member of leadership who is in charge of this poorly run center!! The center director needs to clean house and get staff in there who actually want to help make a difference in the lives of youth who so desperately need that extra push to be productive members of society.

Mark B.

If you do the work then you will be treated kindly by staff....
If you play around and fight then staff will not care for you as you are making it harder for staff and students to pass through the system with their certificates and achievements. With that being said I hope there are more good people to come to this program and use it well.