2nd Annual Workforce Summit

Southeastern and South Central Illinois is welcoming back Ed Morrison from I-Open and Purdue University to assist the region in developing a plan and vision for the economic revitilaization of the region. Having lost 10,000 high paying jobs since 2000, the region is stagnet and not creating high wage jobs. This has supporessed the local economy and many of our counties have flat populations or declining population. Only Effingham has some growth and Coles a minimal growth. With the winds of global competition blowing hard these days, this region needs to begin the process of re-thinking its economy and start growing new business. That is why the Business Solutions program that Eastern Illinois University and the Crossroads Workforce Investment Board are working together with community funders to get the pipeline in place to produce new business. We need the communities help in making this a reality. This is not a donation as much as it is and investment in the future economic vitality and success. We are seeing that we cannot rely on Washington or Springfiled to lend us a hand. It will have to be an reinvestment by our successful businesses in this effort to ensure their current and future success. The lay of the land has changed and we must adapt to survive and grow.

CWIB announces Provider

The Crossroads Workforce Investment Board announced on April 15th that CEFS was the successful bidder to be the provider of services from July 1, 2008 to June 30th 2010. There is an option to renew an addtional year if performance is met. We congradulate them on a successful response to the RFP. We also thank Lake Land College and JobWorks for the excellent work that went into their responses to the RFP. We are facing tough times as a system and as a country with the resession in place. Our funding will be cut 16% this coming year to serve youth, job seekers and dislocated workers as well as employers. It is time for our country to re-commit to having the highest trained workers in the world. That is our competative advantage in a global economy. And, we need to raise our position amoung advanced countries from #24 to at least the top ten. If you haven't seen the film, "2 Million Minutes", I would suggest that you check the trailer out at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WS_QENuOYL8 .

Rescission

In Mattoon, we are looking at a rescision by the US Congress of $164,000 at a time when we are seeing the economy gop into the tank, people being laid off of their jobs, and a 16% reduction in next years funds. The leadership in the Congress, both parties, and the President are oblivious to the growing disconnect we have in the labor market nation wide. We have a continued decline in highly skilled workers, we are graduating young people from colleges and universities with little or no work experience, we have many people holding two jobs to make ends meet, and we are sending billions over to Iraq and spending nothing on raising our own fellow Americans skills to compete in global market. It is a disaster that is growing worse every day.

The business world better wake up soon and begin to get invested in workforce programs like the national and local foundations. The underpinnings of this counties economy is at stake. The ability of our fellow citizens to keep a good living standard is diminishing every day. The costs of gas, oil, corn, wheat, and other basic comodities is stretching our workers to the breaking point. Couple that with the housing problems that are now the bank problems, that are now the retirement funds of millinons of Americans, that are now the ankls capital to be able to lend, and you see a domino effect like we have never seen in this country.

Washington cannot fix it.

Washington cannot get out of the political/ideological fight they are stuck in.

The people cannot continue to wait for their leaders to act.