NEWS

Governor Welcomes Career Readiness Certificate to Wyoming

CHEYENNE - The State of Wyoming yesterday joined with 15 other states in launching a new certificate program that will give career seekers a uniform, concrete measure of their job skills.

In a news conference yesterday in the State Capitol, the Wyoming Department of Workforce Services joined Gov. Dave Freudenthal, Wyoming community colleges, the Wyoming Department of Education and the Wyoming Department of Corrections in launching the Career Readiness Certificate program.

"This is one of those things that wins all the way around, and it is a practical, identifiable step," said Gov. Freudenthal. "People will say, 'Well does this solve workforce?' No, it doesn't, but what it does is put in context that you are not going to solve workforce. Just like every other problem we confront there isn't a silver bullet, there is a series of steps that you are going to take that will ultimately lead you to an improved circumstance. But those steps have to be concrete, they have to be real, and they have to be steps that I think are based on partnership, and I think that this particular program has all of those."

During the press conference, the first Career Readiness Certificates were signed by the Governor who joined Workforce Services Director Joan Evans, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jim McBride and Sen. Michael Von Flatern in presenting certificates to Nathan Hale, Joseph Morelli, Anthony Arias, Katelyn Beckham, Paul Crofts, Amelia McLaughlin and Casandra Puente.

Wyoming's Career Readiness Certificate is an assessment-based credential that gives employers, educators and career seekers a uniform measure of workplace skills. The three areas of focus in the assessment are Reading for Information, Locating Information and Applied Mathematics. The three levels of achievement, from highest to lowest, are gold, silver and bronze. Testing for the Career Readiness Certificate is being administered through the Wyoming Community Colleges and their outreach centers.

The Career Readiness Certificates utilizes the WorkKeys® assessment system developed by the respected researchers at ACT, Inc. in Iowa City, IA - best known for its widely accepted college entrance examination. WorkKeys assessments measure essential workplace skills and provide a score that employers may use to apply objectivity among job seekers and candidates for promotion to new positions. The scores also allow educators and employers to target training when skill gaps are identified by the assessment process. Certification assists state-wide economic development efforts as well, by demonstrating that a pool of skilled workers is available for businesses interested in relocating to, or expanding in Wyoming.

For more information about the Wyoming Department of Workforce Services or Career Readiness Certification visit wyomingworkforce.org/crc or call 877-WORK-WYO.

Download the hi-resolution photos from the event.

Listen to the audio podcast from Dave Freudenthal, Governor of Wyoming.

Watch the video podcast of the event.