LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — The College of Southern Nevada will launch the state’s first degree program for funeral services in the fall.
“It’s giving you the fundamentals of understanding what we do day in and day out,” said Raymond Giddens, Jr. the program’s director.
Justin Hinton speaks to Giddens about the need for a program like this in Nevada.
He says the first class will consist of between 10 and 12 students who will work to earn their associate's degree in the field.
He hopes in the years to come, the program can expand.
“Even though we’re dealing with death, we’re dealing with people that are alive. You’re dealing with their family members after the death occurs, and they need people that are compassionate, that are caring, that have integrity and that just will go out of their way to make sure that something that is so tragic becomes something that is so precious and memorable at the end of the day,” Giddens said.
For years, students have had to leave the state in order to gain the education needed for the career field, one that prepares them to be funeral directors, embalmers, and funeral arrangers.
The National Funeral Directors Association found a labor shortage in the field in 2022, spurred on by the pandemic.
It expects the employment rate in the field to increase by 4% through 2030, making future hiring challenging without a pipeline for workers.
That’s where programs like the one CSN is offering come into play.
It will utilize both classroom space and partnerships with area funeral homes to really give students the hands-on training needed.
“We work with so many different cultures, faith-wise, ethnicity-wise, and everyone has a different way of doing things, and if you don’t have the education behind what we’re doing, it’s hard to work within the industry."
