INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The Indiana Department of Correction is launching a new program, training women who will soon be released from prison how to weld.

Experts say many in Indiana lack the education and training needed to land a good-paying job. At the same time, many released from prison end up returning because they fail to find adequate work and return to crime.

Republican Gov. Eric Holcomb hopes training inmates to weld could help solve both problems.

The welding program was launched this month at Madison Correctional Facility in southern Indiana, where a group of 10 women took the 80-hour course. Those who complete it will receive a certificate from the American Welding Society.

Additional training is needed to become a journeyman welder.