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The Kentucky Post
August 4, 2003
Gateway, Citigroup link up for training
Citigroup wants to hire 2,800 people for its Florence operations, but the financial
giant is having trouble finding enough workers with the skills needed.
Gateway Community and Technical College, the region's new community college,
specializes in training workers.
The two announced today they have linked up to form Citi LINC, a three-phase
program to connect the company's aggressive hiring goals with the aggressive
training possibilities of Northern Kentucky's newest college.
Citigroup, with its corporate campus at 4600 Houston Road, wants to expand
its 2,200-employee Florence workforce to 3,500 to 5,000 in the next few years,
said Citigroup spokeswoman Johnna Fasold.
But the credit and billing specialist is having to turn some people away because
their skills don't meet the pre-employment test grade.
So the first phase of Citi LINC (Learning, Innovation, Networking and Community)
will be free training to help people who don't pass the test increase their
skill level.
After completion of 20 hours of training and passing the ACT Work Keys test,
the person will receive a Kentucky Employability Certificate -- or KEC.
"The KEC certificate will tell area employers that the potential employee
has been through a rigorous program. It can identify who is best suited for
certain jobs, trimming the time and money companies spend on training.,"
said Dr. Ed Hughes, Gateway president.
Up to 300 people a year will be served by the program. After completing the
program and a 90-day waiting period, a potential employee can retest for employment
at Citibank.
"Many people who are testing with us are dislocated workers," Fasold
said. "People who have come from factories that aren't there anymore or
from childcare. We want to help that person; we don't want to send them out
the door."
Citi LINC doesn't just focus on potential Citibank employees.
Phases two and three focus on using The Gateway Center at the Florence Citibank
Campus to help current employees seek both post-secondary education and a Citibank
leadership training in an 18-hour Career Discovery course that is one step to
a management job at Citibank.
In Phase Two, Citibank and Gateway will offer specific Gateway classes on a
"satellite" basis at Citibank. Employees can begin the process of
going back to school at the workplace.
The goal is "to develop creative workforce solutions that will improve
the lives of current and future employees and will ultimately benefit the entire
community. The initial goal is to provide opportunities for individuals to succeed
at the workplace and in lifelong learning," said Dr. Angie Taylor, Vice
President of Community Development at Gateway.
Citibank offers its employees 80 percent tuition reimbursement for undergraduate
coursework at any accredited institution, Fasold said. Business-related master's
degree courses also are reimbursed.
In the Career Discovery course, Citigroup offers, through Gateway, an 18 classroom
hour program aimed at recognizing, grooming and retaining the most qualified
current employees.
The course also allows employees to prepare tangible career plans. Fasold said
that worker development needs and worker underpreparedness are things Citibank
and other companies are facing nationwide.
The Citi LINC program, she said, is designed to circulate training throughout
all levels of employee across time. People trained at Citi LINC can take their
KEC and skills and use them elsewhere.
People interested in taking part in Citi LINC should contact coordinator Theresa
Waulingman at (859) 283-3969.
Herald-Leader
August 6, 2003
29 Robinson Scholars inducted
Twenty-nine middle school students from 29 Eastern Kentucky counties were inducted
into the University of Kentucky's Robinson Scholars Program during ceremonies
at Hazard Community College. This is the seventh year of the scholarship program.
The Robinson Scholars Program provides full tuition, room and board, and books
during the college careers of students who otherwise would be financially unable
to pursue a degree. The students must maintain an acceptable grade point average
and graduate from high school to receive their scholarships. Each scholarship
carries a present-day value of more than $9,500.
The program is open to eighth-graders from 29 Eastern Kentucky counties. Selection
is based on each student's academic potential, essays and interviews. It also
is required that the parents of the selected students have not attained a college
degree. Students apply for consideration through their school guidance counselors.
The students can use the scholarship to attend UK or any of Kentucky's community
colleges.
The first class of Robinson Scholars was inducted in 1997. The program is funded
by earnings from coal mining and logging operations on nearly 4,000 acres of
the 14,000-acre Robinson Forest in Breathitt, Perry and Knott counties. The
UK Board of Trustees, which established the program in 1995, used the E.O. Robinson
Trust to provide increased educational opportunities in Eastern Kentucky, where
college attendance is historically low, compared with other regions of the state.
The Robinson Trust was established in 1922 by Edward O. Robinson, a logging
magnate who gave the university 14,000 acres that had been logged by his firm.
The trust carried a stipulation that it be used primarily for reforestation
and agricultural research or for the benefit of the people of the mountain region.
Since the program began, 452 students have been inducted as Robinson Scholars.
In the 2002-03 academic year, 129 Robinson Scholars attended UK.
This year's inductees and their parents are:
Bell County: Michael Justin Dozier, son of Maryetta Dozier of Ingram.
Breathitt County: Loretta Leann Turner, daughter of William and Elaine Deaton
of Booneville.
Carter County: Stacie Nicole Lowe, daughter of Nancy Lowe of Grayson.
Clay County: Kayla Rachelle Scalf, daughter of Sheryl Gregory of Manchester.
Elliott County: Lori Ann Adkins, daughter of Rick and Sonya Adkins of Sandy
Hook.
Estill County: John Daniel Dawes, son of Teddy and Theresa Dawes of Irvine.
Floyd County: Kateland Opal Hall, daughter of Kenneth and Sherry Hall of McDowell.
Harlan County: Gregory Michael Edens, son of Robert and Kimberly Edens of Grays
Knob.
Jackson County: Zachary Matthew Ryan Daugherty, son of Shannon Kelly Moran
of McKee.
Johnson County: Jarrod Lee Cole, son of Donnie and Martha Cole of Hager Hill.
Knott County: Heather Lauren Cornett, daughter of Luci and Jeffrey Cornett
of Sassafras.
Knox County: Robert Braxton Turteltaub, son of Margie Turteltaub of Girdler.
Laurel County: Melissa Marie Monroe, daughter of Daryl and Nancy Napier of
East Bernstadt.
Lawrence County: Jeconiah Tai Staniford, son of James and Marcella Staniford
of Martha.
Lee County: Jason Ray Hollon, son of Lois Hollon of Beattyville.
Leslie County: Todd Clarence Day, son of Freddy and Patricia Day of Smilax.
Letcher County: Megan Danielle Tolliver, daughter of Robert Tolliver of Jackhorn.
Magoffin County: Whitney Morgan Lemaster, daughter of Pernell and Gwendolyn
Lemaster of Falcon.
Martin County: Charleea Marie Sparks, daughter of Susan Sparks of Beauty.
McCreary County: Jessica Sierra Gibson, daughter of Lonnie and Beth Gibson
of Pine Knot.
Menifee County: Derek Ryan Ferrell, son of Anthony and Carolyn Ferrell of Frenchburg.
Morgan County: Brook Janell Harper, daughter of Lyonel and Deborah Harper of
West Liberty.
Owsley County: Jonathan McCoy Harris, son of Johnny and Rosa Grigsby of Booneville.
Perry County: Courtney Jowanna Fletcher, daughter of James and Jackie Fletcher
of Viper.
Pike County: Colby Alece Kurkowski, daughter of David and Kim Pack of Pikeville.
Powell County: Alison Nicole Wasson, daughter of Marcella Wasson of Stanton.
Rockcastle County: Bellamy Jill Owens, daughter of Ron and Janice Owens of
Mount Vernon.
Whitley County: Scarlet Revay Thomas, daughter of Fay Thomas of Williamsburg.
Wolfe County: Chad William Jones, son of Cynthia Jones of Campton.
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