First session begins Jan. 20
By Kevin Spradlin
PeeDeePost.com
A Southern Pines-based military defense contractor isn’t quite willing to raise the proverbial white flag and is pursuing additional opportunities with Richmond Community College.
Shortly before Thanksgiving, CEO Lane Kjellsen, of K2 Solutions, told its workforce to be prepared for layoffs in January. The Pee Dee Post was the first to report the impending reduction in force. K2 Solutions is a dog training company with a facility in Derby. The company faces financial shortfalls because no new military contracts have recently been signed.
“At K2, we know dogs,” says a Richmond Community College flier touting a new K2 Solutions dog training program.
The primary use of the dogs the company trains is in military environments, as well as law enforcement. The Marine Corps decided to terminate the improved explosive device detection training program, Kjellsen said. With no work, some six dozen workers were expected to be out of work early in the new year.
It’s not clear what, if any, the new “World Class Canine Training” program will have on the impending layoffs. A phone message left at the Southern Pines office wasn’t immediately returned. However, the training will take place primarily at the Derby facility.
The program is divided into five sessions: Training the Trainer, Advanced Detection Seminar, Single Purpose Canine Handler Course, Dual Purpose Canine Handler Course and Multi-Purpose Canine Handle Course.
The program flier highlights K2’s staff, which includes “top trainers from the military, law enforcement and retriever field trials (who) lead an innovative and advanced canine program.”
The sessions began Jan. 19 and end March 20. For more information on the training classes, call Alicia Butler at Richmond Community College at 910-410-1706 or email Butler at ambutler979@richmondcc.edu.
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