Goodwill Industries of Northern Arizona and Coconino Community College will co-host a C4 Learning Lab on June 18th and 19th, 2014. Based on the Careers through Community Navigation model, featuring seven distinct service programs that contribute to good jobs and the development of human capital within a region, this event will inspire and equip participants with a vision for the future to initiate effective working relationships and efficiently put proven practices to work at the local level.
Representatives from Goodwill agencies and community colleges across the United States will come together in Flagstaff, Arizona for the “2014 Learn and Lead Lab” to take an in-depth look at social, economic and employment barriers, while learning how to successfully implement key strategies for leveraging existing resources within their own communities for maximized impact. Attendees will also gain insight about innovative collaborations such as the Northern Arizona Education and Re-Entry Program, the American Veterans and Their Families Initiative, the Financial Literacy and Mentoring Program, the Apartment Maintenance Certificate Training, as well as information about the new Comprehensive One-Stop Center that will open at the Flagstaff Goodwill on July 1, 2014.
“The goal of bringing strategic partners together under one roof is to make it easier for members of the community who are looking to find a job, receive job training, or pursue certificate or degree-seeking education to do so,” explains David Hirsch, President and CEO of Goodwill Industries of Northern Arizona. “As ‘men and women of goodwill’, we are about the very serious business of not only putting our friends and neighbors in Flagstaff and throughout northern Arizona to work, but helping them along their very important career paths.”
Goodwill and Coconino Community College have been recognized by Goodwill Industries International and the American Association of Community Colleges as a “community of best practice” for their focus on providing businesses a qualified workforce and helping both underemployed and unemployed to find jobs while charting a career path. Cutting edge educational and workforce development programs produced through their combined efforts include prior learning assessment, work readiness training, industry specific certificate training, and credit bearing courses for Goodwill team members and customers, providing the potential for significant educational and economic benefits to communities.
Key partners for the June event include the Coconino County Sheriff’s Office, Coconino County Probation, United States Probation, Coconino County Juvenile Court, Catholic Charities, Veterans Resource Center, the National Apartment Association, the Arizona Multi-Housing Apartment Association, and the Coconino County Career Center. Additionally, The Chase Philanthropy Foundation and the Flagstaff Community Foundation support Goodwill’s initiatives as well.
About Goodwill Industries of Northern Arizona
Goodwill Industries of Northern Arizona is an industry-leading not-for-profit business that helps put northern Arizonans to work using our Good Neighbor Centers (aka “stores and donation centers”) to generate revenue that helps fund mission services and as an entrepreneurial business environment in which to provide job training, employment and other vital services.
We fund our activities through the collection and sale of donated merchandise at our 7 Good Neighbor Centers in Coconino, Yavapai, and Mohave counties. For more information, please visit us online at http://www.goodwillna.org.