By David Stinchcomb
Intern EA News
On Thursday, Central Alabama Community College and the Alabama Department of Labor announced a new partnership as the school prepares to start the fall semester at their new campus in Prattville.
The new campus is where East Memorial Christian Academy (EMCA) was before it closed in 2020 due to low enrollment. With the community college moving in, it gave the Alabama Career Center System a chance to add a 56th career center in the state, allowing citizens of all 67 counties to have access to at least one of them.
“This is a big day for Autauga County and here in the City of Prattville,” said Fitzgerald Washington, who is the Secretary of the Alabama Department of Labor. He discussed the state’s recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, which saw the unemployment rate in the state drop from 13.2% to an all time low of 2.7%. “What we try to do is create [an] opportunity for people to have convenience, to tap into the resources that we have, and we look at developing strong partnerships like with Central Alabama Community College and the entire community college system,” he continued. The career centers had a role in that recovery, which is why Washington looks to expand the number of centers in the state.
“The end result will be that our citizens will be better off and that’s what we’re here for,” said Alabama State Senator Clyde Chambliss, who recapped the long and difficult process of making the partnership happen. The career center is expected to provide a boost to the community and surrounding areas. President of the Prattville Chamber of Commerce Patty VanderWal explained that the partnership was, “another thing that’s going to be helping our business and industry, our workers, even from our high school and our technology center.”
Prattville mayor Bill Gillespie Jr. was in attendance for the announcement as well, and he congratulated and thanked both parties as well as Senator Chambliss and the Prattville City Council for their efforts. Washington and Central Alabama Community College President Jeff Lynn signed the documents and put the partnership into effect.
The Alabama Career Center System provides a variety of services to job seekers such as labor market information, unemployment insurance information, job development services, and much more.
In addition to the new center in Prattville, there are also career centers in Montgomery, Clanton, Selma, and Hayneville. For more information, visit the website at https://alabamaworks.com/career-centers/.
