• Community Development Partnership in Philadelphia

• Leake County Industrial Development Association in Carthage

• MBCI Tech Parc

• Mid-MS Development District in Newton

• Winston County Economic Development in Louisville

Fulfilling the Promise....

Please review these recommendations for "Building a Competitive Workforce for the 21st Century."

Amatrol Online Training Library

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WAEM WIRED Initiative

The Workforce Development staff is positioned, resourced and dedicated to improve the economy in the ECCC district by strengthening the professional capacities of the current and future workforce. We will respond with quickness and quality to address the challenges communicated by individuals, employers and communities.

Members of the ECCC Workforce Development Center staff include Roger Whitlock, dean, Workforce Development Center; Joe Barrett, Chris Clark, and Joseph Knight, workforce development coordinators; Brent Gregory, dislocated worker program coordinator; Tina Harris, basic skills specialist; Chris Harris, work-based learning coordinator; Ronald B. Westbrook, director, Small Business Development Center; Wade Hollingsworth, technology counselor, Small Business Development Center; Lucretia Williams, personal development specialist;  Kimberly Mott, marketing specialist; Blake Warren, coordinator/trainer Integrated Technologies Training Center (ITTC); Paul Evans, Matthew Shelley, and Robert Kilpatrick, skills trainers for ITTC; Kyle James, information technology specialist; Mike Ellis, Civic Leadership with the WIRED Initiative; and Joey Kenna, Entrepreneurial Support with the WIRED Initiative.  The Center assists businesses, industries and individuals by providing assessments, training, placement, consultation and educational services in an effort to improve the workforce in the College’s five-county district.

The East Central Community College Workforce Development Center was created in accordance with Mississippi's Workforce and Education Act of 1994 and is supported through the State Board for Community and Junior Colleges. The work of the Workforce Development Center is driven by a District Workforce Development Council whose members represent the five county service area of East Central Community College. Click here in order to preview the guidelines for Workforce Education Support through MS Community Colleges.

The Workforce Development Center provides customized services for individuals, employers and communities in the college district. Individuals can receive assessments, career counseling, referral to training options, job placement, and GED testing. Employers have access to pre-employment training, assistance with the development and delivery of specialized training programs, job analysis, employee testing, customized curriculum development, workplace basic skills, adult basic education, and industrial GED classes. Communities can benefit from classes, seminars and workshops specifically designed to improve professional skills.  For more information on Workforce Development services, contact EC's Workforce Development, Dean, Roger Whitlock at (601) 635-2111 ext. 299.

The Basic Skills Specialist works alongside local industry within the East Central Community College service area to provide needed educational enhancement programs. Language based classes are offered in Spanish and English. Basic Skills offerings are customized to meet workforce needs.

For more information, contact Tina Harris at (601) 635-2111 ext. 304.

East Central Community College (ECCC) in partnership with the State Board for Community and Junior Colleges provides a variety of services to meet specific, customized or individualized training needs. Assistance is available year round, and coordinators develop and deliver the following services within the district.

Pre-Employment Training Pre-Employment instruction is conducted to give participants information and skills needed for jobs with the company. New employees may be selected by the company from these classes.

Post-Employment Training Many jobs require technical skills using specialized equipment and other company resources which cannot be easily duplicated outside the industrial facility. Training for these jobs is described as post-employment training. This training, which often utilizes company personnel as instructors, supplements pre-employment training and continues until the new employee can work independently. Post-employment training typically occurs in a production environment.

Upgrade Training Employee upgrade training is designed to prepare an individual for an advancement in responsibility or job classification. Upgrade training covers a wide variety of areas and is unique from industry to industry. Computer classes are an example of this type of training.

Retraining Retraining programs are designed to prepare existing employees with the new skills needed as a result of production or technological changes. This training typically covers a wide range of areas and is unique to the client being served.

Training Manual and Videotape/CD-ROM Development Working with the Mississippi State University Research and Curriculum Unit, the Workforce Development coordinator can assist with the development and printing of training manuals. The manuals, which are developed to meet the individual needs of a specific industry, are printed at no cost to the company. The Research and Curriculum Unit can also produce videotapes and CD-ROM's for industrial training. These resources are designed to address the training needs of an individual industry.

Services provided through the Workforce Development coordinators bridge the gap between existing knowledge and new skills needed to perform in today's workforce, and...

• Offers employers State-Funded training resources and instruction designed to "Grow Employees" into stronger contributors.

• Delivers supervisor training that addresses communication skills, problem solving, fact-based decision making, motivation, team building, change, etc.

• Enables skill upgrade training so employees can learn and adapt to new technologies.

Examples of other services:

For more information contact one of our coordinators:

• Joe Barrett at (601) 635-2111 ext. 265   •  Chris Clark at (601) 635-2111 ext. 245   • Joseph Knight at (601) 635-2111 ext. 265

Directions to ITTC

Printable Map to ITTC (PDF)

National Center for

Construction Education

and Research

Technical training class content includes:

• Apprenticeship Programs (NCCER - Craft Specific)
• CNC Troubleshooting
• Computer-Aided Design (CAD)
• Construction Trades
• Electric Motor Controls
• Electrical Wiring - Residential/Commercial/Industrial
• Electronic Drive Systems
• Electronics - Basic to Advanced                                                                                 
• Heating and Air-conditioning
• Hydraulics-Pneumatics ---- Basics and Troubleshooting
• Industrial Maintenance - Basic to Advanced
• Integration of Automated Technologies
• Mechanical Drive Systems
• Piping Systems
• Plumbing
• Preventative Maintenance (CMMS)
• Process Controls (Temperature/Flow)
• Programmable Logic Controls
• Robotics
• Vibration Analysis
• Welding (Basic to AWS Certification)

For more information contact:

• Chris Clark at (601) 635-2111 ext. 245
• Robert Kilpatrick at (601) 656-8642
• Joseph Knight at (601) 601-2111, ext. 265
• Blake Warren at (601) 389-0832

The Business Technology Counselor at East Central Community College's Small Business Development Center provides technical support as well as web-site development for clients within the five-county district and tenants of the Neshoba Business Enterprise Center as well as working across the state assisting the MS Small Business Development Centers' technology needs.

For more information, contact: Wade Hollingsworth, at (601) 389-0803 or (601) 635-6297.  

Funded in part through a cooperative agreement with the U. S. Small Business Administration.  All opinions, conclusions, or recommendations expressed are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the SBA.  East Central Community College SBDC is a member of the Mississippi Small Business Development Centers (MSBDC) network.  MSBDC has assisted Mississippi businesses since 1981.   “Reasonable arrangements for persons with disabilities will be made, if requested least two weeks in advance.”   Please contact Ronald B. Westbrook at (601) 635-2111 Ext. 297.

Employed by East Central Community College to coordinate the training/placement services of WIN Job Centers and the community colleges in assisting "Adult/Dislocated Worker Populations." A "dislocated worker" is anyone who lost employment due to plant shutdown or downsizing.

    For more information, contact: Brent Gregory, at 1-877-462-3222, ext. 390.