(April 4, 2003 - AUSTIN, Texas): At a time of high college costs and a tight job market, commercial flooring company Intertech Flooring's "Learn While You Earn" Apprenticeship Program may sound too good to be true. Since 1991, the program has enabled young workers to earn salaries while pursuing vocational training to become certified flooring mechanics.

The program recently got another bonus, when it was named this month as the core curriculum for a two-year associate degree in applied sciences through Austin Community College. The announcement means apprentices can now gain college credits toward a degree program, while working and learning skills to become a journeyman installer. The combination makes the Intertech Apprenticeship Program the only one of its kind in the flooring industry to blend college credits toward a degree program with paid craft training.

The three-year Apprenticeship Program encompasses 133 classroom hours per year and 4,000 hours of paid employment assisting a journeyman installer. Upon completion, apprentices will have earned a certificate from the US Department of Labor as a certified flooring mechanic -- as well as college credits toward a degree in applied sciences. Journeymen installers are among the highest paid technicians in the industry, with the potential to earn in excess of $50,000 annually.

The new Apprenticeship Program features will be unveiled to 3,500 high school students expected to attend the College and Career Summit April 9 at the Austin Convention Center.

"Austin Community College is focused on creating educational opportunities that help fill the workforce needs of Central Texas," said Paul Revere, Austin Community College apprenticeship coordinator. "The Intertech program has a track record of training workers for a key segment of our local economy, commercial construction. By adding the potential to also earn a college degree, the Intertech program gives participants, many of whom may not have considered college an option in the past, the opportunity to earn a degree while they earn a living."

The Intertech Apprenticeship Program is ideal for young workers who want to learn a trade or go to college, but need ongoing income while they pursue their studies. Intertech apprentices earn a percentage of a journeyman's wages, with performance-based raises every six months as the apprentice progresses through the program. Apprentices must be at least 18 years of age, in good physical condition and drug free, and have a high school or GED diploma.

"Austin Community College has been a sponsor of this program since its infancy, and we are delighted to see the program take this next important step by adding a degree-plan component," said Intertech CEO Bill Imhoff. "We believe that investing in workers results in better work. In fact, many of our project managers and team leads today are alumni of the Apprenticeship Program. The career opportunities afforded students through this program are limited only by their own drive and ambition."

Students interested in applying for the Intertech Apprenticeship Program can download an application at www.intertechflooring.com or contact Intertech Flooring at .

Intertech Flooring (www.intertechflooring.com) is a leading provider of commercial flooring products, installation and maintenance to clients throughout Texas and the Southwest. The company's Austin office was established in 1988 and in San Antonio in 1992.