NewsWIB November 2018

Spotlight on Labor Market Information

Spotlight on SWORWIB Board Members

Thank you for your Service to the SWORWIB Board SWORWIB Board Chair Alicia Tidwell and Denise Driehaus, Board Member and Hamilton County Commissioner, thanked board members completing their terms at the November 8, 2018 Quarterly Board Meeting and awarded them a SWORWIB heavy glass paperweight. Left to right in the picture are Gregory Johnson, Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority; Alicia Tidwell; Karen Wessel, U.S. Bank and Treasurer since 2011; Omar Ahmad, Milacron; Kimber Fender, The Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County; Terry Phillips, Allied Construction Industries; and Denise Driehaus, Hamilton County Commissioner.

Exceptional Community Leader Since moving to Cincinnati in 2002, Michael has been dedicated to giving back to the comunity he now calls home. He has focused on supporting underpriviledged youth STEM education. By creating initiatives like "Code for Kids" and Robotics Summer Camps, Michael is working with low-income schools and neighborhoods to narrow the digital divide and empower local students to prepare for careers in the high-tech world of tomorrow. In the West End he has created a "High-Tech Education Hub" by introducing robotics and computer coding to children in the Ted Berry Head Start at Hays-Porter Elementary School, who will be able to continue their high-tech education at Taft Information High School. He is actively involved in promoting innovation through smart city concepts in Cincinnati, and is currently leading the Cincinnati Education SuperCluster Alliance, as part of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) SuperCluster Alliance initiative focused on smart city technologies. As a big fan of open source, he coordinates an internationally known content management system called XOOPS (www.xoops.org). SWORWIB Board Member, Michael Beck was an Award Recipient at the 54th Annual Luncheon of the Community Action Agency held in November. Michael was recognizied as an exceptional community leader for his work in technology education for everyone an re-recognized at the November SWORWIB Qquarterly Meeting.

Workforce Status in our Region Board Member Dr. Eric Rademacher from the UC Institute for Policy Research presented recent social and demographic information about our region’s workforce at the November 8 th Quarterly Board Meeting. The topics covered included our region’s post-recession recovery and the current employment climate. He also led Board discussion around the challenges some of our workforce faces due to the “Cliff Effect” and the ways artificial intelligence is transforming regional workplaces and workforce development needs at an accelerating pace.

The State of Public and Affordable Housing in Greater Cincinnati Gregory Johnson, Chief Executive Officer, Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority, presented to the SWORWIB November 8th meeting on the state of public and affordable housing in Greater Cincinnati and across America. Johnson explained the aging infrastructure of most of the public housing in the country and the growing cost of housing development across all markets. New direction at the federal level is focused on housing authorities managing public property for contained costs while many housing sites require design and safety updates along with structure soundness. Johnson also addressed their approach to both education and engagement of the residents in understanding the complexities of choices that the Housing Authority has to manage in similar ways as each resident family must manage their choices with their limited resources. He described the educational approach of residents prioritizing which repairs and improvements should be undertaken with limited funding.

Spotlight on Veterans for Veterans Month

Queen City Veterans Job Fair On November 15, 2018, when the local weather news announced “Ice storm with nearly 50K in dark after system swept across Cincinnati region”, the OhioMeansJobs/Cincinnati-Hamilton County Center had 41 Veterans, Veteran spouses and other Veteran family members brave the elements to attend the Queen City Veterans Job Fair meeting with employers and service providers.

Veterans Job Fair Success Story Navy Veteran, Eric, (pictured) was determined to visit the OhioMeansJobs/Cincinnati-Hamilton County Center on Thursday, November 15th. Not even an ice storm or running out of gas stopped him. Wanting to obtain employment and whatever assistance he could for his family, Eric walked four miles to attend the Job Fair.   During his visit with the ODJFS Disabled Veterans Outreach Program Specialist, Jules Camarda, he learned about the Veterans Job Fair being held that day. After taking with several recruiters, Eric was offered a position with Allied Universal Security for $15 an hour and accepted the position right then. He will also receive gas cards provided by OMJ’s Prevention, Retention and Contingency (PRC) program to help him with transportation to start his new job at CVG airport.  Eric’s story demonstrates the tenacity of our Veterans and rewards the collaborative efforts of OhioMeansJobs/Cincinnati-Hamilton County and Ohio Department of Job & Family Services staff whose efforts are well-coordinated and focused on our employer and jobseeker customers. The SWORWIB salutes the Veterans who attended and met with employers and service providers on Cincinnati’s “first ice day of the new season”. We also salute the OhioMeansJobs teams, Veterans and others, for their commitment to good service. Thank you: OMJ Business Services Unit (Kathleen Busemeyer and Rosemary Peterson and Chuck Walters); PRC (Jamie Mansu); ODJFS Disabled Veterans Outreach Program (Jules Camarda on duty that morning and all the team members who assisted the effort); the Front Desk staff who helped promote the event and direct customers to the Job Fair; Sonya Walder who assisted with registration and one-on-one resume development services and Teresa Robinson for her services with the Resource Room during the event and Melissa Frances of Volunteers of America who counseled Veterans about their services.