York Tech Receives DOC Grant to Strengthen Area Workforce

April 6, 2007

ROCK HILL—York Technical College announced today the details of a $243,986 grant it recently received from the South Carolina Department of Commerce. The grant is part of the DOC’s Workforce Development Program that is intended to strengthen South Carolina’s workforce.

York Technical College will use the grant funds to address, identify and close workforce skills gaps in York, Lancaster and Chester counties by furthering the use of the WorkKeys system in workforce development. WorkKeys is a system that matches the skills employers are looking for with the skills individuals possess. The process involves job profiling, competency assessments and further training to bridge skills gaps and match job requirements.

Over the next 12 months, York Technical College working with local agencies and organizations will use WorkKeys to assess 1,200 students and job seekers, and provide skills gap training for test takers who wish to improve their WorkKeys scores. The college will also profile 50 jobs at companies located in or planning to locate in York, Chester or Lancaster counties. This will involve working with job incumbents to determine tasks involved in their jobs and the skill levels necessary to accomplish those tasks. Other outcomes include the development of an 80-hour, two-week pre-employment training class.

The WorkKeys expansion grant initiative is coming at a critical time for the economy of the region and the state. South Carolina continues to have one of the highest jobless rates in the country. Only Michigan and Mississippi have higher rates. According to the most recent U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics report, South Carolina ranks 48th in the nation with a 6.1 percent unemployment rate. The national unemployment rate currently is at 4.5 percent.

"We already know we have a great workforce,” said York Technical College President Dr. Greg Rutherford. “This tool will document that, and it will help us be even more competitive by insuring that our working citizens remain the best equipped in the world."

County unemployment figures obtained from the South Carolina Employment Security Commission show that Chester County has an unemployment rate of 11.5 percent, the fifth highest in the state. Lancaster County’s rate of unemployment stands at 9.6 percent, followed by York County with an unemployment rate of 6.1 percent.

The college’s partners in the WorkKeys expansion initiative include the Catawba Regional Workforce Investment Board, the Employment Security Commissions of York, Chester and Lancaster counties, Lancaster Adult Education, area chambers of commerce, the Chester County Economic Development Corporation, the Lancaster County Literacy Cooperative, the Chester County Career Center, the Rock Hill Applied Technology Center, the Lancaster County Career Center, the South Carolina Technical College System, and companies who are currently end-users of the WorkKeys systems, such as Tyco Electronics and Bowater Coated Pulp and Paper.

For more information about the WorkKeys expansion grant, contact Dr. Ed Duffy at (803) 327-8012 or duffy@yorktech.com.