WMCC Campus News: President's Columns

Apply for Training Funds Through the White Mountains Community College Business Training Center

Katharine Eneguess, President of White Mountains Community College

This past fall, Dennis Delay, deputy director of the New Hampshire Center for Public Policy Studies in Concord, said that New Hampshire went into this current economic downturn starting off better than its regional counterparts. Speaking in Boston at the semiannual meeting of the New England Economic Partnership, Delay did predict dark days ahead, but also said that unemployment and job growth rates in New Hampshire are better than the region's and nation's average. Though New Hampshire's unemployment rate in January rose to 5.1 percent, it's still over two percent lower than the national average of 7.6 percent. Rhode Island's December unemployment hit 10 percent. Maine's was 7 percent, Vermont's 6.4 and Massachusetts' was 6.9.

While we hope that our neighboring states recover from the present economic situation as quickly as we do, we are proud that the unique public-private partnerships that New Hampshire is known for will help us recover faster than the rest of the nation from this recession, as we have in past recessions.

One of those public-private partnerships is the New Hampshire Job Training Fund. This program awards grants to help companies provide training for their workers, enabling both the companies and their employees to compete in the global economy. The fund provides grants for up to 50 percent of training costs. We are happy to report that the training is done through the Community College System of New Hampshire. Each of the state's community colleges has a Business Training Center and a director of Workforce Development. At White Mountains Community College, John Dyer is our director of the Business Training Center and Community Education Center.

To be eligible to apply for the funds, a company must be in New Hampshire or be relocating in New Hampshire. Applicants are required to contact their local community college before applying to review their needs, and to see if the college will be able to meet their training needs. At White Mountains Community College, we offer extensive assessment services to help companies design effective and efficient training programs. John Dyer can be contacted at 752-1113, ext. 3007, or toll free at 1-800-445-4525, ext. 3007.

We can offer workshops in everything from early childhood education to water/wastewater technology. We can help a company's employees increase their employees' business and technical math skills, work on their communication and problem solving, and upgrade their computer skills. We can offer workshops very specific to a company's training needs.

Among the companies in the North Country that have taken advantage of the New Hampshire Job Training Fund program are KD Paine & Partners in Berlin, training for 16 workers, the Upper Valley Press in North Haverhill, training for 15 employees, and Littleton Coin Company, training for 18 workers.

One of New Hampshire's economic advantages has always been its highly educated and skilled workforce. Partnering with businesses to make sure that workforce remains skilled and educated, we at the White Mountains Community College are dedicated to retaining that New Hampshire advantage.

For more information go to http://nhjobtrainingfund.org/ and our Business Training Center. The application is available for download at the New Hampshire Job Training website.

And if your schedule permits, stop by the Third Annual North Country Trade Show, Saturday, March 21 at WMCC, between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. Valley Ventures, a MicroCredit-NH Business Group based in Berlin, has organized the event which showcases the products and services of small businesses in the region. It's an opportunity for the community to become better acquainted with the wide range of businesses in the North Country. If you are considering starting your own business, or strengthening an existing business, this event is a must. MicroCredit-NH will have a booth to answer any questions. You'll be able to speak with many small business owner and benefit from the speakers and workshops. Hope to see you there!

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