Workforce Journal Volume IV Issue 4

WorkforceWorkforceWorkforce Volume IV Issue 4Volume IV Issue 4Volume IV Issue 4

April 2009April 2009April 2009

WEST CENTRAL WORKFORCE

INVESTMENT AREA

Inside this issue:Inside this issue:Inside this issue: Health Career Camp 2009…… 2

Rapid-Fire Job Search Plan..... 2

Workforce Building ………….. 2

BattleBots Competition…….… 3

Robotics Competition ………... 3

ARRA Special Projects ….…... 4

Consortium-based Classes …... 5

Governor’s Award Winners…. 5

Journal

OH*PENN INTERSTATE REGION

On March 2, Governors Ed Rendell of Pennsylvania and Ted Strickland of Ohio announced the designation of the nation’s first Interstate Workforce Region. The OH-PENN Interstate Region cons i s t s o f Co lu mbiana , Mahoning and Trumbull Counties in Ohio and Lawrence and Mercer Counties in Pennsylvania. This designation allows workforce officials in the five counties to coordinate their strategic planning and participate in regional planning, information and service coordination efforts that extend beyond their jurisdictional borders. Several different focus groups met during the months of January

2009

Bert Cene, Executive Director of the Mahoning and Columbiana Training Association and Executive Director of Workforce Development Sam Giannetti address the Business and Economic

Development focus group at the Avalon Golf & Country Club in Hermitage, Pa. on February 4.

and February to perform a SWOT analysis. The Business and Economic Development Group met on February 4 at the Avalon Golf & Country Club in Hermitage, Pa. The Education focus group convened at Butler County Community College’s new facility at Lawrence Crossing in New Castle, Pa. The Leadership Committee met on February 27 at Leo’s Ristorante and Banquet Center in Warren, Oh. A press conference providing details about the project’s progress and future plans was held immediately following the meeting. Funding for the Interstate region is provided, in part, by a $250,000

Regional Innovation Grant from the U.S. Department of Labor. A Regional Summit where stakeholders will develop a strategic plan to establish the group’s priorities, objectives and goals will be held on April 23 from 1:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m. at the Avalon Golf & Country Club in Buhl Park in Hermitage, Pa. Registration begins at 1:00 p.m.

We share the same people and we have the same demographics in business. It was big steel in the past and we’ve kind of evolved the same way since.

- Bert Cene, Executive Director Mahoning and Columbiana Training Association

“ ”

Lawrence County

102 Margaret Street New Castle, PA 16101

Phone: 724-656-3165 TDD: 724-598-2075 FAX: 724-656-3232

Eileen Borrelli CareerLink Administrator

Mercer County

217 West State Street Sharon, PA 16146

Phone: 724-347-9257 TDD: 724-983-5822 FAX: 724-983-5701

Angela Palumbo CareerLink Administrator

Web SiteWeb Site

www.cwds.state.pa.uswww.cwds.state.pa.us

222

Workforce Journal Volume IV Issue 4 April 2009

PA CareerLink PA CareerLink ofof Lawrence CountyLawrence County

EMPLOYER ADVISORYEMPLOYER ADVISORY COUNCIL MEETINGS (EAC)COUNCIL MEETINGS (EAC) __________________________________

May 1 How to Measure Employee How to Measure Employee SatisfactionSatisfaction

8:00 a.m. Shenango Presbyterian Senior Care 238 S Market St New Wilmington, PA

June 5 HR Legal UpdateHR Legal Update

8:00 a.m. PA CareerLink Lawrence County 102 Margaret Street New Castle, PA July 10 Trends in Compensation Trends in Compensation ProgramsPrograms

8:00 a.m. PA CareerLink Lawrence County 102 Margaret Street New Castle, PA

WORKFORCE BUILDING BREAKS GROUND

Construction of the new Workforce Building began on March 16. The project is located in the LindenPointe technical business park in Hermitage, Pa. The 5,272-square-foot building will be used by colleges and training agencies and will contain a 20-seat computer lab, a 20-seat electronics lab and a 32-seat lecture room. It is set to be completed in October. The city is seeking additional funding for a planned Technology Center that will be constructed adjacent to the Workforce building and would contain business incubator suites as well as a testing lab for high-tech businesses.

Gary Gulla (left), Assistant City Manager and Community Development Director, reviews the building plans at the

construction site of the Workforce Building with William E. Finzel, President of the City of Hermitage Board of Commissioners.

HEALTH CAREERS CAMP 2009

The Northwest Healthcare Industry Partnership (NWHIP) in collaboration with the Northwest Pennsylvania Area Health Education Center (NW PA AHEC) and West Central Job Partnership will be holding a Health Career Camp the week of June 22 - 26 at Thiel College in Greenville, Pa.

This is the fifth year that the camp has been held, and its first time in Mercer county. The camp is for 9th, 10th and 11th grade students who are interested in careers in the health care field. Applications for the camp can be downloaded online at www.nwpaahec.org. They are

“RAPID-FIRE JOB SEARCH PLAN”

The PA CareerLink Lawrence County is offering its “Rapid-Fire Job Search Plan”: a series of four workshops for anyone looking to improve their job-searching skills. The workshops are results-oriented, interactive information sessions which enable participants to: Workshop 1 - Rapid-fire Personal Job Search: Develop a personal, written job search strategy designed to generate

numerous job leads and more self-confidence. Workshop 2 - Résumé Assistance/Cover Letter: Create a powerful, skills-based résumé that captures the interest of the employer Workshop 3 - The “Perfect Application” and Successful Interview: Execute the "perfect" job application and master positive interview techniques. Workshop 4 - Resources for

Success: Access to a wide variety o f on l ine resources fo r employment leads and work skills strengthening. If you are interested in attending the “Rapid-Fire Job Search Plan” workshops, visit the PA CareerLink Lawrence County or call (724) 656-3165.

due at the NW PA AHEC office by April 17, 2009.

http://www.nwpaahec.org/�

333


MERCER COUNTY CAREER CENTER STUDENTS WIN THIRD PLACE IN ROBOTICS COMPETITION

MCCC students Jeremiah Tribley (kneeling) of Greenville and Joey Bluto (standing) of Keystone prepare their team’s robot for the competition. They took third place in the afternoon

session’s dance portion.

The Mercer County Career Center competed in the 11th annual no r theas t Oh io Robo t i c s Competition sponsored by General Motors - was held at Youngstown State University’s Beeghly Center on March 11. Of the 24 schools that participated, the Career Center was the only one from Pennsylvania. Two teams of three students each from the MCCC’s Electronics Program submitted a robot to compete in the competitions two sessions. The morning team consisted of Robert Barr of West Middlesex and Deanna Pettigrew and Bradly Heim both of Reynolds. The afternoon team of Logan Moore of Grove City, Jeremiah Tribley of Greenville and Joey Bluto of Keystone.

T h e r o b o t s w e r e programmed to dance and to compete in a relay race where they were required to transport three ping pong-sized balls separately from one end of a relay board to the other. Electronics Instructor, Paul Ryan, said “The emphasis here is for the students to not only develop a robotic structure that would execute the necessary functions but also develop a working program so that the robot would complete each task in a chronological format. What better way to teach the fundamentals of electronics and programming?” The afternoon team won third place in the dance portion of the competition.

LOCAL SCHOOLS COMPETE IN COMPETITION

Twenty-eight teams from 14 area schools competed in the RoboBots program that took place at Meadville Area Senior High School on April 4. The event was coordinated by the Northwest Pennsylvania National Tooling and Machining Association. The competition took place in two sessions. The morning session ran from 10:30 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. and the afternoon session ran from 1:30 p.m. - 3:30 p.m. RoboBots is modeled on the BattleBots IQ educational program which was created by the producers of the BattleBots television series. The competition is designed to get high school students interested in careers in the technical field.

The Mercer County Career Center, the only participating school from Mercer County, had four teams of a total of 33 students: the Thunkers, S.W.A.T., Team Blitzkreig and Ragnarok. Their bots were the Thunken, Quin II, Panzerchrek and Ragnarok, respectively. All of the robots weighed 15 pounds or less and were radio-controlled. The winners of the matches were determined in one of four ways: knock out, technical knock out, tap out or judge’s decision. The Venango Technology Center’s VTC-PM team took first place overall with their bot Anubus.

More than 1,300 spectators showed up at Meadville Area Senior High School on April 4th to watch 28 student teams

compete in the RoboBots competition.

Calendar of Events

April 14 Youth Council Meeting 8:00 a.m. Radisson Hotel West Middlesex, PA

April 14 ARRA Meeting 10:00 a.m. Radisson Hotel West Middlesex, PA

April 15 Lifeline to Valley Workers 10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. Chevy Centre Youngstown, OH

April 22 Disabled American Veterans Mobile Service Office Visit 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. PA CareerLink Mercer County Sharon, PA

April 23 Interstate Region Summit 1:00 p.m. - 4:30 p.m. Avalon Golf & Country Club Hermitage, PA April 29 Here to Help Mercer County 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. Hickory VFW Hermitage, PA

May 4 Recovery Act Special Projects Informational Meeting 9:00 a.m. PA CareerLink Mercer County Sharon, PA 2:00 p.m. PA CareerLink Lawrence County New Castle, PA

444

AMERICAN RELIEF & RECOVERY ACT (ARRA) SPECIAL PROJECTS

municipality has meaningful projects that could utilize the SPCs, please contact WCJP to request a Special Project Request Form that will outline the work you would like accomplished. Special Project Requests with start dates beginning in May should be submitted by close of business on April 17, 2009. All other requests should be submitted by close of business on May 15, 2009. Preference will be given to worksites where conservation and existing “green” work can be used to provide training and work opportunities in areas such as: retrofitting of public buildings; the construction of energy-efficient affordable public housing; solar panel installation;

The recently passed American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) will result in funding al locat ions to the Local Workforce Investment Areas (WIAs) to operate stimulus package employment programs. The first program introduced by West Central Job Partnership (WCJP) will be a summer program for youth 18-24 years of age. WCJP will create mobile Stimulus Project Crews (SPCs) consisting of five to six youth accompanied by working supervisors. SPCs would travel to various sites in Lawrence and Mercer Counties to work on projects that will assist in the revitalization of our local communities and employers. If your agency, business or

reclaiming of public park and trail areas; weatherization of public buildings; or the recycling of computers. A Public meeting is scheduled for Monday, May 4, 2009 at 9:00 a.m. at the PA CareerLink Mercer County and at 2:00 p.m. at the PA CareerLink Lawrence County for any business, agency or municipality that would be interested in providing special p r o j e c t s f o r a S u m m e r Employment Program for youth aged 18-24. Auxiliary aids and services are available to individuals with disabilities. If you have a special project, or w o u l d l i k e a d d i t i o n a l information, please contact Rebecca Moder at 724-658-2501


Notice

West Central Job Partnership, Inc. is an equal opportunity employer, and all

programs administered or operated by West Central Job Partnership, Inc. are equal

opportunity programs. Auxiliary aids and services are available, upon request, to

individuals with disabilities, and interpretation services are available, at no charge, for individuals who lack proficiency

in English language skills.


555

GOVERNOR’S ACHIEVEMENT AWARD WINNERS RECOGNIZED

On March 18, the West Central Workforce Investment Board honored its Governor’s Achievement Award Winners. The award recognizes exemplary individuals w h o h a v e p a r t i c i p a t e d i n P e n n s y l v a n i a ’ s w o r k f o r c e development programs. Lori Sheehy was recognized in the Dislocated Worker category and Colleen "Bree" Smith was recognized in the Youth category. They were nominated by PA CareerLink Lawrence County staff Marianne Fleis and Mary Ann Moss, respectively. "Words cannot express the gratitude I have for the WIA program,” said Ms. Sheehy. “They took a sad, life-changing time in my life and showed me a new path - a direction that I could take to make things better." They will be honored by the Department of Labor & Industry at the PA Partners annual conference on M a y 6 i n H e r s h e y , P a .

West Central’s Governor’s Achievement Award Winners are recognized at the March 18th Workforce Investment

Board Meeting. From left to right, Lori Sheehy, winner in the Dislocated Worker category, and Colleen "Bree" Smith, winner in the Youth category, along with WIB Chairman

Mark McNulty.

CONSORTIUM-BASED CLASSES AT PMI

Over 35 Employees from nine d i f f e r en t c o mp a n i e s a r e participating in five different consortium-based classes at PMI in Sharon, Pa. These classes are funded through the Advanced Manufacturing & Diversified Materials Industry Partnership. The courses, that began in early February and will run through the beginning of April, include: CNC Milling, Programmable Logic Controllers, Industrial Electricity, Blueprint Reading and Auto Cad. Another round of classes is set to begin in late April/early May. If you are interested, please contact Eric Karmecy at (724) 658-2501 x228.

The CNC Milling class from left to right: Richard Cox, Chuck Eckley, Brian Karing, Richard Carter, Dale Rhode, Neil Babcock, Instructor Dan Astey, Timothy

Bell, and Bryan Choco.

Calendar of Events

May 6-8 PA Partners Annual Conference Hershey Lodge Hershey, PA May 13 WIB Meeting 6:00 p.m. New Englander Banquet CenterNew Castle, PA June 4 WEDnet 2009 9:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. Mercer County Career Center Mercer, PA June 10 Here to Help Lawrence County 10:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. St. Joseph the Worker New Castle, PA

Industry Partnership Meeting Schedule

April 15 Transportation Education & Economic Network (TEEN) 10:00 a.m. Conference Call April 24 Food Processing Industry Partnership (FPIP) 11:00 a.m. Edinboro University Crawford Hall Edinboro, PA* May 11 SkillUp 11:00 a.m. Conference Call May 15 Advanced Materials & Diversified Manufacturing 8:30 a.m. Butler County Community College at Lawrence Crossing New Castle, PA* *Conference Call also available


44 South Beaver Street - New Castle, PA 16101

WEST CENTRAL JOB PARTNERSHIP, INC.

VISIT US ON THE WEB AT http://www.wcjp.org

If you wish to change the method by which you receive this Newsletter, or no longer wish to receive it, please send an email detailing your request to [email protected] or call 724-658-2501 ext. 207.

The WORKFORCE JOURNAL is published quarterly by West Central Job Partnership, Inc., a not-for-profit corporation, having

its principal office at 44 South Beaver Street, New Castle, PA

16101.

Eric Karmecy Editor

Rebecca Moder Assistant Editor

GOVERNING BOARD West Central Job Partnership, Inc.

Steve Craig Chairperson

Lawrence County Commissioner

John Lechner

Vice-Chairperson Mercer County Commissioner

Richard DeBlasio Secretary/Treasurer Lawrence County

Commissioner

Ken Ammann Mercer County Commissioner

Brian Beader Mercer County Commissioner

Daniel J. Vogler Lawrence County

Commissioner

Congratulations to Thomas & Betts Corporation of Mercer, PA for being named the state winner of the American Legion’s Employer of Veterans Award in

AMERICAN LEGION HONORS LOCAL EMPLOYER

the large employer (201+ employees) category. The period of consideration was the 2007 Program Year which ran July 1, 2007 - June 30, 2008. They were nominated for the award by Veterans’ Employment

Representatives John Bunnell and Walter Simpson of the PA CareerLink Mercer County. The award will be presented at the American Legion Awards Ceremony in Harrisburg on June 12, 2009.

CAREERLINK PARTICIPATES IN SHENANGO VALLEY CHAMBER’S BUSINESS EXPO

PA State House Representative Mark Longietti stops by the CareerLink table at the Shenango Valley Chamber of Commerce

Job Expo. Pictured from left to right: John Bunnell, Mark Longietti, Chris Burger and Adam Moore.

The PA CareerLink Mercer County was one of 65 businesses to participate in the Shenango Valley Chamber of Commerce’s Business Expo on February 5. The event was held from 12:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m. at the Radisson Hotel in West Middlesex, Pa. CareerLink staff were on hand to greet job-seekers and provide information about the many programs that the CareerLink offers. “The Business Expo provided our local businesses and job-seekers a network to familiarize them with information on all the resources that are available” said Chris Burger, PA CareerLink Mercer County Program Manager.

Documents

Workforce Journal Volume IV Issue 4