Workforce Development IS Economic Development

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CCEDC’s Workforce Team attended the PA Workforce Development Board symposium in State College (l to r) Marianne Stack, Patti VanCleave, Tracey Oberholtzer, Tiffany Bell, Nancy Kunkle, Marybeth DiVincenzo, Sherry Cockerham, and Jim Lauckner

By Marybeth DiVincenzo

On October 18-20, the eight members of the Chester County Economic Development Council (CCEDC) staff, who manage five of the region’s industry partnerships  (IPs) and Hire One, participated in the PA Workforce Development Board symposium.

The conference was kicked off by a session devoted to the impact of the Next Generation of Sector Strategies model on existing industry partnerships.  This session allowed for CCEDC staff to meet and benchmark with our IP managers from across the Commonwealth.

On day two, Marybeth DiVincenzo, SVP and CMO for CCEDC and Pat Bokovitz, Director of the Chester County Workforce Development Board, presented on the successes of collaborations between economic development and workforce development.

Chester County has led this partnership approach since the early 1990s.  This partnership has also enhanced the County’s Workforce and Innovation Act local plan with the inclusion of industry partnerships.

While the conference focused mainly on the “Ideas that Transform” current Workforce Development Board approaches to the new Workforce Innovation and Opportunities act, the current inclusion of industry partnerships is critical.

Key takeaways were the reinforcement of the need for workforce, education and economic development to work hand-in-hand to more effectively meet the needs of our employers and in preparing our future workforce.
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