The Saline County Economic Development Corporation will host an informational meeting titled, “Go Build Saline: What’s Next in Workforce Education” for Saline County businesses September 14, 2016, 10:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at the Benton Event Center in Benton.
At the meeting, the Career Technical Education Executive Committee and Stantec will discuss plans for the possible formation of a CTE Center in Saline County. The center would provide 21st Century, workforce education programs to students in seven school districts: Benton, Bryant, Bauxite, Sheridan, Harmony Grove, Glen Rose, and Fountain Lake.
The committee and Stantec, the consulting company, have been engaged in a feasibility study for the last 12 months to determine the location, design, and cost of the center, as well as which programs/pathways would best serve the needs of Saline county communities.
“From the beginning of this study, we have been gathering input from our local businesses.” said SCEDC Director, Lamont Cornwell. “We are looking forward to sharing with them the design of the center, as well as the career and technical programs we have determined would best fit the workforce needs they’ve shared with us.”
“Access to quality career and technical training is a critical aspect of our economic development efforts in Arkansas. These programs not only equip our students with the valuable skills they need to succeed in today’s economy, they also better enable us to address any skills gaps in our workforce. Saline County would benefit greatly from a local CTE center,” said Governor Hutchinson.
According to data from the Arkansas Department of Workforce Services, the Arkansas unemployment rate is the lowest it has been since 1976 when the department began calculating the unemployment rate under its current methodology. While this is great news for Arkansas’ workforce, a low unemployment rate can also mean increased difficulty in finding qualified applicants for employers.
“With a CTE center in Saline County, we can train our students to have the skills they need for success in the local workforce,” said Chad Hendrix from Everett Buick GMC.
According to recent research cited on the Association for Career and Technical Education’s website, HYPERLINK “https://www.acteonline.org/” acteonline.org, communities across the nation are benefiting from CTE. In Washington, for example, for every dollar invested in secondary CTE programs, there is a $9 return on investment. In Tennessee, CTE returns $2 for every $1 invested and CTE program completers at the secondary level account for more than $13 million in annual tax revenues.
For more information about this meeting and the plans for the CTE center, please contact: Lamont Cornwell, Saline County CTE Center Project Chairman, SCEDC Director, (501) 860-4007; or Angie Dischinger, Saline County CTE Center Project Manager, Assistant Superintendent Benton School District, (501) 778-4861.