BY MATTHEW STONE

Staff Writer

The chance to get ahead in a brutal job market could come in the form of a dump truck for inmates at a local pre-release center.

Some inmates will be looking for jobs after their release in a year or less. And the dump truck, a 1995 GMC TopKick, will allow a local adult education program to offer them and others the training they need to drive commercial vehicles.

The Maranacook-area school district's adult education program bought the medium-duty truck last week -- thanks to an anonymous donation -- and plans to use the vehicle in a Commercial Drivers License training class that begins later this month.

Inmates from the Central Maine Pre-Release Center in Hallowell will get priority on the 12 spots in the class.

"It offers the guys a great start right out of the gate to have a CDL license," said Richard Charest, director of the Central Maine Pre-Release Center.

The special license grants drivers permission to operate vehicles 26,000 pounds and heavier. Those include buses, construction vehicles and plows.

The 12-person course will include 42 hours of classroom time and 30 hours of drive time for each student, said Deb Bomaster, director of Maranacook's adult education program.

It's been more than a year since the program could last offer the licensing class, Bomaster said. The program previously leased a truck from the Maine Department of Education, but "it got to the point where it was getting very costly to repair," she said.

The adult education program recently received a $5,500 anonymous donation, Bomaster said. She found the used truck at Charles L. Hippler Jr. Used Cars, a dealer in Manchester, for $6,000.

The Commercial Drivers License training class has been a popular one in the past, Bomaster said.

"It's been rough not to have it," she said. "We still get calls from people wanting to take the class."

At the pre-release center, Charest said, interest among inmates generally runs high.

"It's just a matter of whether some of the fellows have the money or have some time," he said.

The Department of Corrections subsidizes the $1,000 course fee, Bomaster and Charest said.

"It's a great collaboration with the school," Charest said, noting the central Maine center is the only one offering a way for inmates to receive commercial license training. "It works for everyone."

Matthew Stone -- 623-3811, ext. 435

mstone@centralmaine.com