About the Peninsula Council for Workforce Development

The Peninsula Council for Workforce Development works diligently to meet the workforce development needs of area employers through initiatives that focus on both known and anticipated human resource imbalances. In the past 18 months, the Council and its predecessor organization have worked with employers throughout the region to determine and define those long-term needs. No one knows the current and future skill requirements of its workforce better than the employer. So with the help of industry representatives, this past year the Peninsula Council for Workforce Development identified unmet needs within five industry clusters: financial services, automotive, hospitality, health care and construction. By serving as the region’s workforce development intermediary, the Council offers its members, partners and strategic allies a strong return on contributions for their time and financial contributions. These partners included more than 100 organizations and more than 2,700 participants during the past fiscal year. Listed below are selected highlights of demand-driven outcomes formed from the Council’s partnerships with employers and training providers during the past 12 months.

Based on these efforts, the Council has identified and established programs to promote workforce development in a number of areas:

• Financial Services Management Program. The financial cluster worked diligently with Thomas Nelson Community College by reviewing objectives and identifying courses for a 24-hour program designed for individuals in the industry who want to advance, as well as those who want to enter the field. To earn a certificate through TNCC, individuals must take basic courses in accounting, business and supervision. • Your FutureFest. Presented by the Council, Peninsula Worklink, Opportunity Inc., WTKR-TV, the Virginia Career and Education Foundation and others, the youth-oriented job fair was held at the Hampton Roads Convention Center in October 2005. The event promoted careers in targeted industries and businesses to an emerging workforce. • Certified Nursing Assistant Program. From March 2005 through June 2006, 54 students completed the CNA program, which is offered through a partnership between New Horizons Regional Education Center, the Greater Peninsula Workforce Development Consortium and the Council. Thanks, in large part, to cluster members, most of these students found full-time work with benefits within weeks of completing the program. The program continues to be a favorite among out-of-school youth because of the high demand for CNAs. • Customer Service Training Program. With the predictable seasonal turnover, members of the hospitality industry cluster requested customer service training sessions. Low-cost training seminars are now offered twice a year, in the spring prior to tourist season and in the fall prior to the holiday season. Survey results indicate that the majority of attendees — 73.5 percent of respondents in the fall and 80 percent in the spring — rated the presentations excellent. • Advance Auto Collision/Structural Repair Program. The automotive cluster is strongly aligned with the New Horizons Regional Education Center’s vocational program and Thomas Nelson Community College. During the 2005-2006 school year, the New Horizons program trained 99 students in its Advance Auto Collision/Structural Repair program. The program is intended to address the acute shortage of automotive collsion and structural repair specialists that exists not only in Hampton Roads, but across the country. • Pre-apprenticeship Construction Trades Program. This program, which is offered through a partnership between New Horizons Regional Education Center, the Greater Peninsula Workforce Development Consortium and the Council, focuses on training unskilled out-of-school youth to be proficient in the construction trade of electrical wiring, carpentry, plumbing, concrete finishing or masonry. Program participants spend 10 weeks in training before being placed for more training on the job. From March 2005 through June 2006, 58 students completed the program and entered the workforce.