Workforce Development Update

BEDFORD — More trained workers, more county residents with post-secondary education and job training, increasing the number of residents who complete high school, a career and technical education center that offers pathways and skills to high school students.

Lawrence County’s Workforce Coalition has been working through an ambitious list of goals since it received a grant from the Department of Workforce Development in 2017 to improve the county’s workforce and educational attainment.
Joe Timbrook, director of career development for the coalition, which is part of the Lawrence County Economic Growth Council, presented information about the coalition’s efforts to the Bedford City Council Tuesday night at Bedford City Hall.

 
Increasing enrollment in the North Lawrence Career Center has been a primary focus. Timbrook said partnerships with local business and industry have resulted in donations of money and equipment to update the career center’s programs.
Through the Skill Up grant of $693,000 the coalition received from the state, $200,000 will be spent at the NLCC. Timbrook said $100,000 will be used for new for precision machining equipment and $100,000 for health sciences.
“By the time we’re done, $400,000 in donations will have been donated to the career center,” he said.

A strategic plan paid for by the coalition will provide goals for the NLCC as it refines its focus on career readiness. The plan is expected to be adopted by the North Lawrence Community Schools board at its meeting Feb. 20.
Goals of the strategic plan include:
• Raising student awareness, motivation and readiness for careers offered at the NLCC
• More professional development for NLCC teachers
• Expand programs at NLCC to meet industry standards and local employer needs
• Align NLCC programs with key current and future employer needs
• Increase parent and community awareness of the value of career and technical education and array of high wage, in-demand career opportunities available to students at all education levels

In 2019, the coalition launched a marketing campaign aimed at adults without a high school diploma. Partnering with the local Adult Basic Education program offered by Vincennes University, Timbrook said enrollment in the high school equivalency program has greatly increased.

“We are at 38 so far this year who have completed the HSE and we were at 14 this time a year ago,” he said. “Our goal is to have 100 adults with their HSE by June.”
Increasing the number of Lawrence County adults with a high school diploma or HSE is part of a larger goal of increasing postsecondary education.

The state has set a goal of having 60% of adults with post-secondary education in the form of job training, program certificate or college.
“As a state, we’re at 41% and Lawrence County is 27%,” Timbrook said. “You can’t increase post-secondary attainment when you have a large percentage without a high school diploma.
“Communities like ours are never going to get to 60%, but we can work to get from 27 to 40% and be a part of the overall success story of Indiana.”

By: Carol Johnson - TimesMail