RELEASE: October 15, 2007
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Workforce Development Conference begins next week
Community colleges prominent in Governor’s Workforce Development Awards
RALEIGH - Each year, the North Carolina agencies most responsible for preparing the state’s workforce hold a conference to learn from each other and to honor success stories. Community colleges are a major partner in this endeavor and that role is reflected in their presence among award recipients.
The conference focuses on building partnerships and providing better service to employers and job seekers across the state. This year’s “partnership” conference theme, “Open Roads Open Minds: NC’s Workforce Journey,” focuses on creative ways to attack the challenges of keeping North Carolina’s economy moving forward with a well-trained, technically prepared workforce. The conference begins on Wednesday, October 17 and runs through October 19 at the Koury Convention Center in Greensboro, NC.
The Keynote session at 1:30 on Wednesday features Steve Uzzell, a National Geographic photographer. His presentation; “Open Roads Open Minds: An Exploration of Creative Problem Solving,” will use his striking photographs as illustrations of his metaphor about possibility and creativity. “Our eyes will only ever see what our mind is prepared to comprehend,” says Uzzell. He encourages his audiences to be prepared for chance happenings – to see the possibilities that exist.
Conference sessions are geared to the different groups participating. Featured workshops include case management, business services, career readiness certification, youth services, labor market information, and economic development and partnerships.
The Governor’s Award for Workforce Excellence goes to individuals and businesses that have shown their ability to meet challenges in their lives or the lives of their employees, often with the help of a community college. The Governor’s Awards honor individuals for their outstanding accomplishments and businesses for their contribution in helping the state achieve its workforce development goals. Honorees will be recognized at the Governor’s Award Banquet at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, October 18.
Century Furniture Company in Hickory is an Outstanding Employer. This family-owned business provides an employee-centered work environment that has led to considerable employee longevity. Employee advancement and training opportunities are among the services the company provides. Working with the Catawba County JobLink Career Center and the Western Piedmont Workforce Development Board, the company helped its employees and increased public awareness of the state’s furniture industry. The company is actively involved with the Catawba-Valley Community College Furniture Technology Program, donating frames and fabrics to the school, providing factory tours to students, and encouraging students to apply for positions at the company. Century is being honored for its commitment to employees, the furniture industry and community success.
Impressions Marketing Group in Washington, NC is the other Outstanding Employer. The company manufactures commercial fixtures and décor, including display graphic and workstations for various retailers. The company, based in Virginia, located a portion of its manufacturing facility to North Carolina in 2001. The company grew from 25 employees to 165 in less than six years and an expansion to 285 is planned through collaboration with Beaufort County Community College and other agencies. The company has partnered with the Region Q Workforce Development Board and other economic development agencies to provide workers needed training and services. To develop a skilled workforce, the company provides the local high school a no-cost, on-site cabinet-making curriculum and then purchases the completed cabinets. The company also provides resources to various workforce training programs.
Randy Barker of Asheboro is one of the Outstanding Workforce Development Adult honorees. Downsizing led to Barker losing his job of 29 years. His situation led him to pursue a long-held, but deferred dream of working in the funeral industry. He needed retraining. He entered Randolph Community College with assistance from the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) in 2003 and then Fayetteville Technical Community College’s Funeral Service Education Program. Neither the rigorous courses nor the 300 mile commute deterred his resolve. He won scholarships, was on the Dean’s List, and was inducted into the Phi Kappa Honor Society. After graduating in May of this year, he is now in charge of logistics and other aspects of the funeral service for Loftin Funeral Home. When asked about his job, he replies, “I am honored to have a small part in helping families during some of the darkest times of their lives.”
Belinda Washington of Sanford is the second Outstanding Workforce Development Adult honoree. A major head injury when she was a teenager caused epileptic seizures for most of her adult life, but didn’t end her dream of being a computer programmer. She married her high school sweetheart, who was in the military. This led to proper medical treatment and ended her seizures. She gained certification as a computer programmer, but lost her husband to divorce. Not long after her father and a sibling died, her seizures returned due to the stress. Belinda worked as a Certified Nursing Assistant, took care of her mother and brother, and still found time to enroll in school in hopes of becoming a computer expert. The JobLink Career Center helped her enroll in Central Carolina Community College’s Office System Technology Program with WIA resources. In 2006 she received her Associate in Applied Science degree in Office Systems Technology and additional certification in Information Word Processing and Receptionist. She is now an outpatient registration receptionist at Moore Regional Hospital.
Aren Doolin of Spruce Pine is an Outstanding Workforce Development Youth honoree. Doolin enrolled in the WIA Youth Program in 2001 at the age of 15 and was very involved in workshops and skill activities. He graduated from high school in 2004 and enrolled in Mayland Community College, pursuing an Associate Degree in Computer Programming. These were two of his life goals. A WIA work experience activity led to a part-time, then full-time job with a computing business. Scheduled to graduate next May, he is employed full-time as a network administrator at Spruce Pine Hospital and attends college at night. Now 21, he has his first house and his first child and is a positive example for his siblings and friends.
Charlie McAllister of St. Pauls, is the second Outstanding Workforce Development Youth honoree. From birth, Charlie faced serious health problems and learning disabilities. He was unable to communicate verbally until the age of 14, which meant poor academic and social performance in public school. The sister he leaned on for support died an early and violent death, soon followed by the death of his mother. It took considerable family encouragement and medical help to pull him out of his despair. He enrolled in the GED program at Bladen Community College and in the WIA Youth Program, where he was very involved. He is a recent honors graduate of Bladen Community College with an Associate in Science Degree in Information Systems Technology, is certified in networking, web design, computer applications, and programming. He looks forward to a bright and exciting future.
Nattalie Castro of Washington is the recipient of the Wayne Daves Award for Outstanding Achievement in Workforce Development. Once a client of the Beaufort County JobLink Career Center, she is now the Lead Employment Specialist for the agency. She coordinates services for the Adult, Dislocated Worker, and Youth WIA programs and the integration of partnership efforts – all while maintaining a full caseload of her own. Nattalie is the driving force behind the Beaufort County JobLink’s Hispanic Initiatives Program, which recently won the 2007 Innovation Award from the National Association of Development Organizations (NADO). She is personally responsible for many valuable workforce initiatives and services for the growing Hispanic community. In addition to her demanding job, Nattalie has attained her Associate of Arts Degree from Beaufort County Community College and is pursuing an undergraduate degree in Business at Mount Olive College. She has twice been voted JobLink Employee of the Quarter by her peers. In large part because of Nattalie’s contributions, the Beaufort County JobLink Career Center has become a driving, visionary force in the community, engaging and developing the emerging workforce.
The North Carolina Community College System enrolls almost 800,000 students in 58 comprehensive community colleges. Internationally recognized for the scope and quality of its programs, the system is North Carolina's primary provider of workforce preparation and adult education. For details and information about the NCCCS, visit www.nccommunitycolleges.edu.
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