Macks Creek School was proud to be a part of Camden County’s Work Ready Community Celebration. Our Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Josh Phillips and Board of Education Secretary, Mrs. Stacy Trusty attended the event, which was put together by the Tri-County Certified Work Ready Community Initiative. Governor Mike Parson was the guest presenter for the event which was held at the Exchange in Camdenton.
The Governor began his remarks with the explanation that “work ready" refers to individuals, typically students who are close to graduation, who are trained and ready for the demands of the job market. He shared that “65% of Missourians do not have college degrees and it is the job of our school counselors, throughout our state, to help students identify good jobs and the skill sets needed to get these jobs.” He further elaborated “students shouldn't graduate high school with just a high school diploma, they should have other credentials”, which is why Camden County has worked to become an official Work Ready community. The governor explained 110 Missouri counties are now Work Ready Certified and he believes that is one reason Missouri is “currently among the top 5 states in America for manufacturing.” He also shared “in June, we were number one in the entire nation for job creation.” The Governor thanked the Community Initiative for all of their hard work and is looking forward to young people earning their National Career Ready Certifications (NCRC). He is also grateful for all of the employers in our county who recognize the benefits of hiring employees who have these credentials. As he stated, “students who are work ready have the needed skills to take advantage of well paying jobs right here in the lake area.”
K.C. Cloke, the head of the Camdenton Area Chamber of Commerce introduced the Governor and each of the guest speakers. In the agenda for the event she shared Camden County has “83 employers who recognize National Career Readiness Certificates”. She also shared, 547 Camden county high school juniors and seniors have completed the NCRC exam process and are ready to work in these skilled fields. Additionally, she highlighted “298 members of the work force have better positioned themselves to take better jobs by completing the NCRC process.”
Last year four Macks Creek seniors earned an NCRC and eight MC seniors are taking steps to earn the certification this year. Dr. Jill Durnin, the Lake Career and Technical Director, shared since “the certificate validates the readiness of a student to be ready to perform in the labor force, students with these credentials can expect better wages and opportunities.” Students who earn the certification should also realize it is not just accepted right here in Camden County or the State of Missouri, but throughout our entire country as it is a nationally recognized credential.
According to https://www.workreadycommunities.org/,:
Work Ready Community initiative in Missouri is an effort to align workforce and education to meet the economic needs of the state and local communities. It is guided by key community leaders (elected officials, economic development, business leaders, chambers of commerce, educators and workforce development, in each community).
The website further shares, "the vision for Work Ready Communities is to attract, retain, and develop a workforce with education and fundamental skills — Workplace Documents, Applied Math and Graphic Literacy — to succeed in the 21st Century."
Mike Chittium, the Central Ozarks Private Industry Compliance Officer spoke and shared a handout summarizing how NCRC benefits our students as they transition from high school to the workforce. The handout also elaborates on how employers are utilizing NCRC to hire skilled work ready employees. Here is a link to that resource: https://5il.co/2xjq1.
Macks Creek School is proud of our students who have earned their National Career Ready Certification! We are also grateful to the Community Initiative for their work since 2017 to ensure that Camden County is a Work Ready Community! Lastly, we appreciate the 83 local employers who recognize NCRC and provide good, well paying jobs for our outstanding graduates!
Governor Mike Parson speaking about the importance of students being "work ready".
Dr. Phillips and Mrs. Trusty had a chance to visit with the Governor about progress our school district is making to ensure or students are successful in school and in life. Governor Parson related he enjoyed playing basketball on our campus in the old gym when the Pirates played his alma mater, the Wheatland Mules during his high school days.
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