By: Brian Hancock

GILBERTSVILLE, Ky – The West Kentucky Workforce had their annual board meeting on January 15 at the Kentucky Dam Village Convention Center located in Gilbertsville, KY.  Peter LaFleur, MJC Center Director, Gavin Gorham, MJC Director of Career Services, Troy Fitzhugh, MJC Director of Student Training, and Brian Hancock, MJC Business Community Liaison, represented the Muhlenberg Job Corps.

One of the main topics that peaked a lot of interest in the meeting was Kentucky Governor Matt Bevin’s issued order to create a Kentucky Works Collaborative. Bevin, in partnership with the Kentucky Education and Workforce development Cabinet (EWDC) and the Kentucky Workforce Innovation Board (KWIB), signed an executive order establishing the Kentucky Works Collaborative to guide the Commonwealth’s workforce efforts through statewide implementation of the KWIB’s strategic plan.

The Muhlenberg staff was able to meet with the Commissioner Ray Leathers for a few minutes following the meeting. Commissioner Leathers spoke briefly about the 18-member collaboration that will implement a strategic statewide (cont.) workforce development plan. The main focus of the discussion was when the Commissioner said that he thought an important key for this year was to make Work-Based-Learning (WBL) something that our state should work on building up. The Commissioner feels that WBL can be something that helps bridge the gap in helping to prepare the workforce in Kentucky.

In hearing this MJC Director of Career Services Gavin Gorham shared with Commissioner Leathers that WBL is something Muhlenberg Job Corps has been doing for 20 years. However, in the past four years, WBL has become a prime focus.  Gorham went on to say the national average for graduates was 148.52, Horizons was 202.5 and Muhlenberg Job Corps was 292.  Gorham said MJCC took the responsibility of making this an important area of focus for Muhlenberg Job Corps over four years ago.

He brought his staff and CTT instructors together, giving them all a role in helping to build WBL. He said, “The staff understood the importance and made this goal a priority.”  He added MJCC placed an emphasis on marketing WBL learning to the students with some incentives and over time, it has become culture for the students. He said, “They just know that WBL is something you are going to do.”

Commissioner Leathers thanked MJCC for its hard work on WBL. This was very reassuring for MJCC as they continue to move forward in preparing young adults for life after Job Corps and into the workforce.