May 28, 2003
Albany-- Schools, colleges, and business working together for growth. Georgia is pushing a program called Workforce Development to attract new industry. The idea is that schools, colleges, and businesses work together, to train skilled employees industries are seeking.
Jimmy Perez is a biomedical engineer at Phoebe Putney Hospital. Hospitals are desperately seeking employees with work skills like Perez. Perez is one of the success stories that Georgia Workforce is developing.
Phoebe Putney partnered with Darton College to teach Perez medical engineering, so he could repair life saving equipment for their patients. Workforce coordinates cooperation to develop skilled, educated employees in Southwest Georgia.
Workforce Vice Chair Pam Teague said "If you have the right workforce skills, you are attractive to the business community. You are attractive to businesses that want to relocate in the state. I think that plays well for our strategy for economic development in the state of Georgia." Georgia Workforce leaders came together with industry and labor leaders at Albany State University.
"Without that [training] it makes it impossible for them to be profitable, and be successful and stay in business," Teague said.
Business needs skilled employees, and workforce is being developed to attract new industry with a skilled labor force. Teague said "It's very important to train people with the right skill sets that the business community is looking for."
The Southwest Georgia Workforce project involves education in 14 counties.
posted at 5:30PM by dave.miller@walb.com
^Jimmy Perez
^ Workforce Vice Chair Pam Teague
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