Six locals complete job readiness program

Special to The Tribune
Published: August 8, 2008

Wallace Community College recently awarded certificates to six completers of the Ready to Work Training Program offered at the WCC Sparks Campus Workforce Development Center.

Sammie Walker, Mary Spann, Edna Lynn, Travyius Cokely, LaCora Griffin and Terry Green successfully completed all requirements for the Alabama Certified Worker Certificate and Alabama Career Readiness Certificate.

Wallace is among 39 sites across the state to offer Ready to Work, a free job readiness training program designed to prepare individuals with entry-level employment skills.

The program is intended to improve the quality of Alabama’s workforce by providing a career path for adults with limited education and employment experience.

The training curriculum is designed to meet standards set by business and industry employers throughout the state, with skills cited in the U.S. Department of Labor’s Secretary’s Commission on Achieving Necessary Skills (SCANS) Reports. 

Training includes basic education, computer skills, problem solving, workplace behavior, manufacturing and job acquisition.

The Alabama Career Readiness Certificate and the Alabama Certified Worker Certification, standard, recognized credentials, document successful completion of the program. 

Ready to Work is an annual grant funded through the Alabama Adult Education Program of the Alabama Department of Postsecondary Education and in cooperation with Alabama Industrial Development Training. Clients admitted to the program must be at least 16 years of age, must not be enrolled in high school, and must function at or below the 12.9 level on the Test for Adult Basic Education. 

The Ready to Work program participants learn basic computer skills, employer expectations of appropriate workplace behavior, job search techniques to include resume writing and interviewing, and introduction to business and manufacturing concepts used by Alabama employers.

Individuals successfully completing the class are eligible to receive the Alabama Certified Worker Certificate and the Alabama Career Readiness Certificate, both recognized by Alabama businesses and industries as meeting basic educational and skill requirements necessary for employment.