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BELLE –– Students at Belle High School were recently presented with
ACT’s National Career Readiness Certificates (NCRC) for successfully completing
WorkKeys testing. Maries County Presiding Commissioner Ray Schwartze presented
the certificates to approximately 31 juniors and seniors at the high school.
Also on hand for the
certificate presentations was Cheri Tune, director of Missouri's Certified Work
Ready Communities program, and Bonnie Prigge, executive director of the Meramec
Regional Planning Commission (MRPC). MRPC assisted the Gasconade Valley
Enterprise Zone in securing the grant and helped BHS staff coordinate testing.
 Students from Belle High School were recently presented with National Career Ready Certificates recently for successful completion of WorkKeys testing.
MARYVILLE —
Educators, elected officials, economic and workforce developers, business
owners, chamber representatives and others met here to work on a region wide
application to the state of Missouri’s Certified Work Ready Communities
initiative.
The
Northwest Missouri Regional Council of Governments’ regional application on
behalf of Atchison, Gentry, Holt, Nodaway, and Worth counties was accepted by
the state’s Workforce Development Board in January. The five counties are
now considered Work Ready Communities in Progress. To be fully certified, each county has a two-year window to meet goals related to WorkKeys testing and employer
engagement.
For more
information about the Certified Work Ready Communities initiative, visit the
ACT Work Ready Communities website or contact the Regional Council at 660-582-5121.
 Cheri Tune, director of the Missouri Certified Work Ready Communities program, participated in a panel discussion in Columbia as part of the Missouri ACT State Organization’s College and Career Readiness Conference. This statewide conference seeks to inform, educate, and inspire education professionals who prepare students for college and work success.
Tune appeared with Rick Bryant, ACT, Sherry Copeland, Southeast Missouri State University and Lisa Sireno, Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education to address the state of education and workforce in Missouri. Tune also appeared as part of a panel with Jasen Jones, executive director of the Southwest Missouri Workforce Innovation Board; and Mardy Leathers, executive director, Center for Workforce Development, East Central College; during a break-out session regarding how economic development, education, and workforce development are working together to build WorkReady Communities.
Tune said conference participants came away with new ideas regarding best practices for helping Missouri students prepare for success after high school.
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 While Marion and Ralls
counties are pushing forward to achieve full certified status after receiving
“in-progress” Certified Work Ready Community status in January, Vernon County
has been designated as being workforce ready. Read about Marion and Ralls
counties efforts and Vernon County’s
designation in these recent news articles.
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 By Missy Bonnot
Director, Economic Development
Jefferson City Chamber of Commerce
Representatives from State Technical College, the Missouri Career Center, Jefferson City Public Schools and the Jefferson City Area Chamber of Commerce say Cole County needs a way to quantify a skilled workforce in our area. The answer is in the Certified Work Ready Community program.
“The reason we have been working so hard for this certification is because it would give us the ability to objectively report the strength of our local workforce," stated Missy Bonnot, Director of Economic Development for the Jefferson City Area Chamber of Commerce. “For example, when businesses are relocating and are looking at Jefferson City and ask, ‘What skills does your workforce have?' it can be a difficult question to answer. We have a general idea… but to be able to say 68 percent of the local workforce have obtained a Silver level NCRC, etc., they have a much better understanding of our workforce.” Read more...
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