MASON CITY – Project Lead Forward, a public-private partnership designed to help relieve the shortage of skilled workers in rural Iowa will continue to phase two. Iowa Business Growth Company (IBGC) and North Iowa Area Community College (NIACC) launched Project Lead Forward in early 2013 in an effort to identify and execute strategies to address the shortage of skilled workers in North Central Iowa. Iowa businesses face a shortage of skilled workers to meet the demands of business and available training opportunities for would-be workers are key to addressing this issue.
Phase 1 of Project Lead Forward was a program focusing on helping participants move through a tiered pathway of gaining college readiness and employable skills, short-term workforce training certificates, and enrollment in a diploma or degree program at NIACC. All tiers were designed to increase participant workforce skills so they could move on to a higher level of training or exit the program to the workforce with the skills needed to be successful.
Iowa Business Growth Company, located in Johnston, works with small businesses throughout Iowa that need an alternate financing structure that complements what a traditional bank can offer. IBGC works with the customers’ bank to determine which product best fits the customer’s needs. Products offered are the SBA 504 Loan, Wellmark Mezzanine Fund, and New Market Tax Credits. The Phase 2 funding for this project is $115,000.
Phase 2 will focus on a variety of strategies including outreach to middle school and high school students to expose them to the jobs and career opportunities available in local industries, direct student support in the areas of Adult Basic Education and literacy, tuition assistance for short-term workforce certificate programs, and support to NIACC programs designed to help individuals access the resources they need to overcome barriers so they can be successful in their academic pursuits. Also, connecting students with local employers and their job and internship openings will be focused on.
A Recruit Minnesota initiative is also included in Phase 2. This will involve an expanded effort to recruit people who live in Minnesota to be students at NIACC. NIACC feels it is well positioned to increase its Minnesota market share due to geographic proximity and the fact that NIACC provides a scholarship to any Minnesota resident who attends NIACC which makes their cost of attendance the same as an Iowa resident. The idea behind recruiting more Minnesotans to NIACC is that some will stay in Iowa to work and live after graduation, therefore increasing the pool of skilled workers in Iowa. Iowa Association of Community College Trustee information tells us that 84% of community college career & technical program graduates live and work in Iowa after they graduate.
“IBGC’s mission is to help stimulate the economy in Iowa through our lending activities,” said Daniel T. Robeson, President of IBGC. “Our goal is to provide Iowans with increased employment opportunities through the projects we help finance. Our partnership with NIACC is a departure from our normal approach of helping businesses create jobs to a position where we are helping individuals improve their employment potential for current jobs. This is just another approach for IBGC to achieve our mission to improve the quality of life in Iowa through a strong economy”.
NIACC President, Dr. Steve Schulz said, “We are thrilled to have the opportunity to continue our partnership with IBGC to address the challenges being faced by North Iowans and our businesses. We are grateful for their confidence in NIACC and will work together to address the workforce challenges of our region through their financial support and NIACC’s training and educational expertise.”
The pay for private citizens should be equal to all governments jobs and benefits and if not subsidized by the various governments -city /state/ federal.