JEFFERSON CITY, Mo- Today, the Missouri Department of Economic Development announced that Franklin County has reached additional goals to maintain its designation as a Missouri Certified Work Ready Community for another two years. Franklin County is the second county in the country and the state of Missouri to maintain this status. The workforce development program aims to attract and retain business in Franklin County.
“Earning this designation is no easy task and to maintain it over the year calls for significant dedication from the community and its partners,” said Mike Downing, director of the Missouri Department of Economic Development. “I am extremely proud of Franklin County for their continued efforts to develop Missouri’s top economic development asset-our workforce.”
In January 2014, Gov. Jay Nixon presented the original proclamation designating Franklin County as a Certified Work Ready Community (CWRC), a program developed by American College Testing (ACT) and guided by community leaders, businesses and educators. At that time, Franklin County was one of just five counties in the nation to receive the CWRC designation.
Throughout 2013, a team of 17 people from communities throughout Franklin County worked with more than 70 local employers, educational institutions and workforce development organizations to achieve the CWRC designation. In July of this year, the Franklin County commission recommitted efforts to continue developing its workforce and approved the resolution to meet additional goals to maintain its certification status.
“This has been a great success story for Franklin County and shows how business and industry, education and local government can work together for economic development and maintain a properly trained workforce,” said Joel Doepker, vice president for external relations at East Central College. “Having a certified and qualified workforce is helpful when it comes to attracting and retaining business in the county.”
Counties participating in the CWRC program work to have their emerging, unemployed and current workers take a series of tests to obtain National Career Readiness Certificates (NCRC). These certificates demonstrate skills such as problem solving, critical thinking and mathematical reasoning-many of which are in demand by employers. The NCRC helps validate the quality of a community’s workforce to help attract and retain business as well as reveals areas where improvements can be made.
To date, 87 area employers are supporting the initiative and more than 1,500 NCRC have been awarded to workers. East Central College works with local businesses to assess worker skills and abilities and then provides pathways to earn the certificates.
In 2012, Missouri was selected as one of the first four states to participate in the Certified Work Ready Communities initiative by ACT. The national initiative was developed to close the skills gap by aligning workforce training programs with the economic development needs of communities.
