A Hope Realized 

This week I had the pleasure of attending an event that truly marks a dream come true for my office: the opening of Oakhill Correctional Institution’s Job Center. The job center will be open every week with a host of programs and services, including career readiness programming, job search assistance, and resume development. For many years, I’ve advocated for an opportunity like this for our inmates to learn, grow their skills and then return to the communities from which they came. It’s so great to see these efforts realized. 

Read more on Oakhill’s new Job Center here: 

The Cap Times: 'Look at how far we've come': First prison-based job center in Wisconsin opens at Oakhill

WPR: First-Of-Its-Kind Job Center At Wisconsin Prison Works To Bring Hope, Future Success To Inmates

And check out my recent op-ed on this and prison reform: 

Right Wisconsin: Our Inmates Are Ready to Work: Let's give them the opportunity to do so

Now more than ever, when unemployment is so low and Wisconsin companies need qualified people to fill jobs, it’s important that we look for ways to include all qualified Wisconsinites in our workforce. Former inmates are just one example. Another, is our veterans. 

In August, Wisconsin launched a campaign to bring military personnel and their families here once they leave the service. So far, the Wisconsin-based marketing campaign has been to three military bases across the country. And they have 421 active cases to bring military personnel to our state. This is another great way to expand our workforce while also taking care of our veterans, something I care deeply about.

One More Time

Finally, this week my team is preparing for the upcoming 8^th annual Governor’s Small Business Summit. We’ve revamped the program this year, and are looking forward to some interesting panels on more ways we can grow our workforce. Please register here if you haven’t already done so!  

Forward,

Rebecca Kleefisch
Lt. Governor

P.S. This week, Christmas decorations started going up in the capitol. As you can see, the tree was successfully delivered. We look forward to seeing it set up and decorated in the rotunda. Governor Walker announced this year's theme for the tree: America's Dairyland.