State WIB Appointed

Governor Barnes swore in the members of the Workforce Investment Board in a December 15 ceremony at the Capitol Education Center. The board was created in response to the Federal Workforce Investment Act of 1998. Board members will oversee the development of the workforce investment plan and distribute funds to a variety of job training programs.

The Governor's appointees are:

Howard Atkins, Commissioner, Atlanta Workforce Development Agency; Kenneth Breeden, Commissioner, Department of Technical and Adult Education; Tom Burbage, President, Lockheed Martin Aeronautical Systems; Gloria Butler, State Senator; Tracy Campbell, CEO KidsGym USA, Fairburn; Randy Cardoza, Commissioner, Georgia Department of Industry, Trade and Tourism; Jane Cline, CEO, General Box Corporation, Waycross; Dean Dryden, Iron Workers Union #387, Atlanta; Doc Eldridge, Mayor of Athens; Glenn Farner, Laborers Employers' Cooperation and Education Trust, Cumming; W. R. Fletcher, Retired, Vidalia; Ed Graham, Noramco, Athens; Jim Green, Retired, Eastman; Dayton Hedges, President, Hedges Construction, Peachtree City; Jim Higdon, Commissioner, Georgia Department of Community Affairs; Audrey Horne, Commissioner, Georgia Department of Human Resources; Carolyn Hugley, State Representative; Mitchell Inman, Department Head, Marketing, Savannah Technical Institute; Lester Jackson, State Representative; Michael Johnson, Greater Columbus Chamber of Commerce; Gary Laden, Ford Motor Comany, Hapeville; Charles Larke, Superintendent, Richmond County Board of Education, Augusta; Raoul Ilaw, IPA Incorporated, Marietta; Liane Levetan, Chief Executive Officer, Dekalb County; Bo Marlow, United Auto Workers Local #882, Fairburn; Annie Matthews, Atlanta Job Corps; Al McGee, Chairman, Middle Georgia Private Industry Council, Roberta; Michael Meyer von Bremen, State Senator; Glenn Newsome, Director, Georgia Student Finance Commission; Rick Oliver, Plumbers and Pipe-fitters Local #72, Auburn; Richard Orenstein, Chairman, IRO Group, Atlanta; Anthony Parker, President, Savannah Technical Institute; Lonnie Plott, President, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers; Stephen Portch, Chancellor, University System of Georgia; Marion Ray, Political Director, Teamsters Local #728, Atlanta; Richard Ray, Georgia AFL-CIO; Richard Royal, State Representative; Wayne Shackleford, Commissioner, Georgia Department of Transportation; Linda Schrenko, Georgia Superintendent of Schools; Faye Smith, State Senator; Tom Smith, President and CEO, Oglethorpe Power, Alpharetta; Ola Smith, CEO, McKinney Community Health Center, Waycross; James Stiff, President, Goodwill Industries of Middle Georgia, Macon; Wilbur Streat, CEO, N&S Enterprises, Nicholls; Horacina Tate, State Senator; Pamela Teague, IBM Global Learning Services, Atlanta; Doug Teeper, State Representative; James Thompson, Chairman, Toombs County Commission, Lyons; Michael Thurmond, Georgia Commissioner of Labor; Aaron Turpeau, CEO, Henry Aaron, Inc.; Cathy Vaughn, Greater Columbus Homebuilders Association; Charles Walker, Jr., The Walker Group, Augusta; Melinda Wallin, Catoosa County Development Authority, Ringgold; Jim Weatherington, Commissioner, Georgia Department of Corrections; Grace Williams, Grace Williams and Associates, Suwanee

Able to Work

Able to Work is a consortium of business leaders focused on facilitating a fundamental shift in attitudes and awareness about the abilities of people with disabilities. Able to work is managed by the National Business & Disabilities Council, a leading resource for the successful integration of persons with disabilities into the workforce and consumer marketplace. They have a web site where employers have posted jobs for which individuals with disabilities are encouraged to apply.

Bill Gates, Chairman of Microsoft, announced the Able to Work initiative which Microsoft is spearheading. The initiative educates corporations that accommodating people with disabilities in the workplace is easy and inexpensive. Microsoft has enlisted 20 companies to join in its efforts. The Able to Work website & job postings are located at http://www.abletowork.org.

Thought for the Day:
 Work like you don't need the money; love like you've never been hurt; and dance like nobody's watching.

Michael L. Thurmond, Commissioner of Labor, recently announced the opportunity for non-profit organizations and agencies to apply for one-stop funding now available under Georgia's federally approved one-stop implementation grant. Any state or local government agency or any non-profit organization involved in the delivery of human services or workforce services to its community is eligible to apply.

The funds can be used for any one-time expenditure that helps an organization connect to the state's electronic workforce development infrastructure to broaden access for Georgia's citizens and businesses, improves an individual entity's ability to collaborate with the other service partners, and/or improves delivery of services within an existing partnership. The maximum award for a single grant is $25,000.

A simple, one-page application form is available on the Georgia Department of Labor (GDL) web site at http://www.dol.state.ga.us. We have also included a link to the page on the Career Depot web site at http://www.careerdepot.org. The application calls for a description of the specific use to which the one-stop dollars will be applied, the location(s) involved in service delivery, and service improvements anticipated as a result of this one-time expenditure.

Planning, training, and/or service enhancements are among the allowable activities. If funding is requested for expenses that can be expected to recur (e.g. the first-year fee for an internet service provider), the application must explain how those costs will be covered in the future. To ensure coordination with existing initiatives, the application must be endorsed by the appropriate local GDL manager(s) and the Service Delivery Area(s) Director(s). The names and addresses of the GDL managers are on the GDL web site. Northwest Georgia's SDA Director is Gwen Dellinger, Coosa Valley RDC, P.O. Box 1793 Rome GA 30162-1793, 706.295.6485, fax 706.802.5567, GwenD@jtpa.cvrdc.org.

Applications must be submitted to Dr. Helen Parker, Assistant Commissioner for Employment Services, GDL, 148 International Boulevard, Suite 400, Atlanta GA 30303 by Monday, January 31, 2000. Awards will be made by March 1, 2000. All expenditures must be completed and documented to GDL by September 30, 2000. Questions should be directed to the GDL One-Stop Technical Assistance Team. While most questions can probably be answered by telephone or e-mail, staff will be available for on-site visits as necessary. Contact: E-mail ron.vaughn@dol.state.ga.us; Telephone 404.656.7392; Fax 404.651.9377.

John Chamberlin on Youth Services under WIA, January 27, 2000, Macon, Georgia
John Chamberlin on Negotiating WIA Performance Goals, January 28, 2000, Macon, Georgia
Beverly Ford on Case Management for the Hard-to-Employ, February 17 & 18, 2000, Macon, Georgia
Contact Project IDEAS at or visit their home page at www.careerdepot.org/ksuideas.htm for more information.

The Radar Approach to Job Retention, January 27 & 28, 2000, Cocoa Beach, Florida
How to Talk Like Employers Think!, March 13 & 14, 2000, Cocoa Beach, Florida
You Can Be A Change Agent! How to Motivate People Toward Employment!, May 4 & 5, Cocoa Beach, Florida
Contact: Brevard Workforce Development Board Learning Link 407.504.2060, Fax 407.504.2065.

Dr. Stephen Covey, The Four Roles of a Leader: How to Make Every Team Player a Leader, Thursday, February 3, 2000, Chattanooga/Hamilton Co. Convention & Trade Center, Chattanooga, Tennessee
Contact: Lessons in Leadership 800.873.3451, Fax 800.328.5644 or visit http://www.lessonsinleadership.com

Work in Action, Coosa Valley RDC JTPA
February 11, 2000, 9:30 - 3:00; Coosa Valley Technical Institute, Calhoun
Update on WIA, DOL Pilots, Interior Design for One-Stops
Telephone 706.295.6485 or visit www.careerdepot.org

Conferences

The 9^th Annual National Conference on Family Literacy Family Literacy: New Challenges in the New Century, January 24 - 26, 2000, Orlando, Florida
Contact 502.584.1133 or visit http://www.famlit.org

Malcolm Baldrige Quest for Excellence XII
March 13 - 15, 2000, Washington, DC
Contact http://www.quality.nist.gov/

Southeastern Employment & Training Association
Spring Conference 2000, March 19 - 22, 2000, Asheville, North Carolina
Contact Helen Beck beck.helen@avljt.joblink.state.nc.us, 828.250.4760 or visit www.seta.org

Public Human Resource Management Conference & Expo, March 20 -22, 2000, Washington, DC
Contact 703.684.0510 or 800.727.1227, fax 703.739.0489, e-mail lrpconf@lrp.com or www.lrp.com

National Association of Job Training Assistance
18^th Annual Conference for auditors, monitors and MIS personnel, Embracing the Millennium, March 27 - 31, 2000, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Contact 800.747.6252 or 916.447.6252, or visit www.hometown.aol.com/najahome