GRANTEE:                   Greater Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce

ADDRESS:                  c/o Southwest Ohio Workforce Policy Board

441 Vine Street, Suite 300

                             Cincinnati, OH 45202

AMOUNT:                    $1,717,105

DURATION:                January 5, 2004 - January 5, 2007 (36 months)

POPULATION SERVED:  This project will serve 300 people (100 incumbent and 200 unemployed workers) in the areas of Information Technology (IT), Advanced Manufacturing, BioTech, Engineering Technology, and Computer Science. 

BRIEF DESCRIPTION:  This project will provide both bachelor-level certificates in Programming and Engineering and graduate level certificates in Programming, Network Administration, Advanced Manufacturing, Bioinformatics, Biomedical Engineering, and Engineering and Tech Management.   All certificate programs will consist of seven courses and an internship component for hands on experience in the specific field.  Students will earn college credit for each course through the training providers.  Further, students enrolled in the bachelor level will have the opportunity to pursue a Master’s level certificate.  All certificates will be aligned with and measured against specific business-developed Industry Skill Standards.  Training will take place over a three state region: Indiana, Ohio, and Kentucky. 

Partnering employers and training providers will provide $1,435,000 match in cash contribution and $527,000 match in in-kind contributions, totaling $1,962,000

This program will train 300 individuals, 100 incumbent and 200 unemployed.   Approximately 85 percent of the students will complete the program and 80 percent will receive skill certifications.  Of the completers, those incumbent workers will receive a 10 percent wage increase and the unemployed workers will have a job placement rate of 75 percent. 

The project will target employed and unemployed workers with a focus on persons with disabilities.  There will be a minimum standard of prior education.  The assessment prior to enrollment will include various methods to measure the applicant’s academic ability to succeed in an accelerated, high-tech curriculum at the bachelor’s and/or Master’s level.  Assessment criterion will be developed in conjunction with partnering employers. 

KEY PARTICIPANTS:  South West Ohio Workforce Policy Board; Affiliated Computer Systems, Inc.; Convergy; Ohio Department of Development; The Circuit; Diversitech; Cincinnati Business Incubator; Nextgen Fiber Optics, LLC; VSF Technical Services, Inc.; CRC Design, Inc.; Buckeye Asbestos Removal, Inc.; Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce; Clermont County Chamber of Commerce; Procter & Gamble; AFL-CIO.

MEDIA CONTACT:    Juanita Howard

                            (513) 562-8457