MIDDLETOWN,VA - Many attend college hoping to land their dream job. Some shy away from community colleges thinking it will turn off employers but one local school says times have changed.
"We have great partnerships
with Valley Health, we have them with Rubbermaid, with Trex, all of the large
employers in our service region we have relationships and partnerships
with," says Lord Fairfax Community College president, Cheryl Thompson-Stacy.
Unlike a few years ago, employers are now seeking out potential workers at community colleges.
"The community college is an anchor for economic development because we can lower the workforce labor that really is a positive for Virginia and that's one of the reasons they've maintained for the last five years the top state to work for," says Jeanian Clark, vice president of Workforce Solutions.Lord Fairfax Community College says they have already seen dozens of employers reach out to their students.
"Even this past quarter, we've engaged with a number of employers who are looking to locate here, or who have already announced plans they will be looking to locate here this year to help them with identifying the processes of how to launch and ramp up a workforce," adds Clark.
Healthcare, pharmaceutical and information sciences are just a few of the industries in high demand.Clark says community colleges are flexible enough to meet a company's needs.
"We're able to be scalable and deployable at a level that higher education institutions can't be in a style of just in a four-year university so the community college collectively can respond to employer needs no matter how diverse they are," adds Clark.While the job market may seem daunting, many alumni have found themselves on the right path, and exactly where they have always wanted to be.
The Disney Institute will be at the Lord Fairfax Community College on March 28th to teach students their approach of quality customer service. To register for this event, click here.
