Submitted by the Dalton-Whitfield Chamber of Commerce
“We need a work force development system that links work force development and education together and aligns to the economic needs of the state, its regions and local communities.” — Gov. Sonny Perdue
A Work Ready Community Kickoff Breakfast will be on Thursday, Oct. 29, at 8 a.m. at the Northwest Georgia Trade and Convention Center. This breakfast is designed for human resource managers, presidents and CEOs that make the hiring decisions with their company or organization.
There is no cost to attend, but reservations are required by calling the Dalton-Whitfield Chamber of Commerce at (706) 278-7373 or e-mail to info@daltonchamber.org. Reservations will be accepted until Monday morning, Oct. 26.
Whitfield County has joined with 139 other counties in the state to work toward becoming a Certified Work Ready Community. Becoming a Certified Work Ready Community demonstrates the county has the skilled work force that business demands and the educational infrastructure to drive economic growth and prosperity. To earn the designation, counties must:
• Demonstrate a commitment to improving public high school graduation rates through a measurable increase.
• Show a specified percentage of the available and current work force have earned Work Ready Certificates.
Work Ready Certificates can be obtained by taking three 55-minute assessments in the areas of Applied Mathematics, Reading for Information and Locating Information. The assessments are available at Dalton State College and an appointment must be made by calling Sherri Stafford at (706) 272-2558 or by e-mail to sstafford@daltonstate.edu. There is no cost to take the assessments.
“Our county is on an accelerated timeline and we will be working toward not only achieving our goals, but exceeding our goals. Bartow and Catoosa counties have achieved their goal of becoming a Certified Work Ready Community and we want to be able to achieve our goal as well,” said Brian Cooksey of Shaw Industries, chairman of the chamber’s Workforce Development Committee.
