NEWS RELEASE - FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Kentucky Community and Technical College System (KCTCS)
Date: March 25, 2009
Terry W. Brown; 270-707-3732; terry.brown@kccs.edu
Gov. Announces KCTCS Career Transitions Initiative
Three HCC Students (displaced workers) Participate in Event
FRANKFORT, Ky. (March 24, 2009) - Gov. Steve Beshear and Kentucky Community and Technical College System (KCTCS) President Michael B. McCall announced today a KCTCS Career Transitions initiative designed to provide Kentuckians who have lost their jobs with workforce training in high-growth, high-wage fields.
"The KCTCS Career Transitions program is a key ingredient in our efforts to transform the state's economy during these challenging economic times," said Gov. Beshear. "Kentucky's two-year colleges are perfectly positioned to provide the workers with the skills and training they need to succeed in today's marketplace."
The KCTCS year-long initiative is being offered through its statewide system of 16 colleges and features a 50 percent tuition scholarship for up to six credit hours per term (spring, summer and fall) in open enrollment courses along with personalized assistance in navigating the college admissions process. Each KCTCS college will provide displaced Kentucky workers with a coordinator to acclimate them to the campus and its resources. The colleges will also provide: a streamlined admissions process; assistance in filing for state and federal financial aid; and advising and training sessions that maximize the students' opportunity for success and re-employment. Kentucky residents who have become unemployed and have filed for unemployment benefits since Oct. 1, 2008 are eligible for the program.
"The KCTCS Career Transitions program is part of a workforce competitiveness initiative we have launched to enhance Kentucky's capacity to meet current and future job needs," said Dr. McCall. "As the primary provider of workforce training and education in Kentucky, we are working to ensure that our programs and services align with both current and future needs of business and industry."
Kentucky's seasonally adjusted preliminary unemployment rate for January 2009 climbed to a 22-year high of 8.7 percent from December 2008's revised 7.6 percent, according to the Office of Employment and Training (OET), an agency of the Kentucky Education and Workforce Development Cabinet. The January rate was the highest in Kentucky since the 8.9 percent jobless rate recorded in March 1987.
"I've never been laid off or had to rely on unemployment until now," said Robert Lake a non-traditional student at Elizabethtown Community and Technical College (ECTC). "ECTC was there for me...they had the answers I was looking for. The program I am enrolled in is allowing me to obtain an education in something I've always wanted to do."
All KCTCS colleges are working with local Workforce Investment Boards and other agencies to inform dislocated workers of the education resources that are available and to coordinate their efforts. Additionally each college has developed specific workforce training programs to meet the specific needs of their local community.
HCC Participation and Leadership
Three displaced workers who are now a part of the Hopkinsville Community College model for the new Career Transitions Initiative attended the event with HCC President Dr. James E. Selbe. The workers, all now HCC students, are Gary Dixon, Chandra Hendrix and Roger Thompson. During the event, Thompson was the subject of an interview with NPR.
HCC began its pioneering effort several months ago to provide assistance initially to displaced workers of Johnson Controls in Cadiz. As a part of that effort the college is providing on-going dedicated staff and resources to the effort at dedicated facilities in Cadiz.
For more information contact Dr. Randal Wilson at 270-707-3741 (
randy.wilson@kctcs.edu)
From left: KCTCS President Michael B. McCall, Roger Thompson, Chandra Hendrix, Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear, Gary Dixon, and Hopkinsville CC President James E. Selbe.
For most Kentuckians, higher education begins at KCTCS. Our statewide system of 16 colleges and 65 campuses provides citizens throughout the Commonwealth with a quality education that is both accessible and affordable.