Archives for Latest News

Smooth Career Path Ahead for KRA Customer – In December 2017, Darian enrolled in YouthWorks!—a career-development program for Out-of-School Youth and young adults (18-24)—operated by KRA for the Anne Arundel Workforce Development Corporation (AAWDC). Adhering to the Maryland Workplace Excellence Program, co-developed by AAWDC, YouthWorks! combines career assessment and guidance with workplace-skills training to equip young jobseekers with resources that maximize their potential for long-term workforce success. James LeBlanc, KRA Program Manager, reported, “Darian was the ideal candidate for Youthworks!  During a Workplace Excellence Workshop, our Career Exploration Team discovered he was committed to a healthy lifestyle…vegetarian diet; daily exercise; and creating his own
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Recently, the San Diego Union-Tribune published a Commentary, written by Barbara Bry, San Diego City Council president pro tem, and Ji Shen, CEO of HoverCam, on “How San Diego is Growing Local Tech Talent.” It read, in part, “San Diego is beginning to act locally by developing, sourcing, hiring and investing in its own tech talent. TechHire, a program administered by the San Diego Workforce Partnership, is aimed at increasing the number and diversity of qualified tech talent in San Diego.” Through TechHire, a national initiative, businesses can hire candidates for project-specific-internships at no initial cost, due to the first
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As the month celebrating both Disability Awareness and Developmental Disabilities Awareness, we say good-bye to March—but not to KRA’s dedication to community-based, workforce-services programs that support our jobseeker-customers with disabilities, including those of a developmental origin. However, communities differ widely in their needs, as well as their resources to address those needs. Thus, KRA programs customize service-delivery systems to provide the highest possible quality of service to persons with any type of disability that presents an obstacle to gainful employment. All WIOA American Job Centers (AJC) and TANF Employment Programs (TEP), operated by KRA, develop collaborative relationships with local disability-services agencies, e.g. Departments of Rehabilitation Services, Disability Services (DDS), and Vocational
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Parents, Teachers, Career-Guidance Counselors…all advise students and jobseekers, young and adult, that the more education, training, and experience you gain, the better your chances of career success, i.e. good jobs with better pay and advancement opportunities.  Certainly, this is true, in both the short- and long-run as we establish ourselves in the labor market. However, after 18 jobless months, Philip Tan was beginning to think his post-graduate education and 20+ years’ experience were actually obstacles, not assets, to his employment.  Moreover, he was a bit older than those candidates competing for the same jobs. In 1986, Philip earned a BS
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In early 2017, KRA San Diego Metro Career Centers’ Catherine McLean, Career Agent, and Terrance Bowens, Workshop Facilitator, developed the New Beginnings Pathways to Employment Program for justice-involved individuals, i.e. jobseeker-customers with criminal records. Laura Bowden, KRA Business Services Representative, often attends New Beginnings Workshops to inform participants about job openings available through the Career Centers. For one opportunity in particular, Terrance introduced her to Robert Garcia, who was more than ready, willing, and able to get his life back on track through sustainable employment. For a Driver & Warehouse Associate position with San Diego Drums & Totes, which KRA/San
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In March 2016, the KRA San Diego Metro Career Centers, operated for the San Diego Workforce Partnership, launched  Searching in San Diego, the Centers’ official podcast for on-demand access to the most up-to-date workforce-services information and resources of interest to both job-seeking professionals and employers. Highlighting “workforce topics, trends, and tips you need to know on the go”, the Searching in San Diego Podcast is hosted by Diana Saldivar, KRA Social Media & Communications Coordinator, and supported by a cadre of KRA Career Development, Business Services, Facilitation, and Special Projects Coordinators, whose own experiences, many times, contribute to episode development. To date, 39 podcasts
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The KRA Knowledge2Career (K2C) Academy, funded by The Pacific Gateway Workforce Investment Network, offers Out-of-School Youth, 17-21, a wide range of customized workforce-development services, two of which are Occupational Skills Training, linked directly to industry-recognized credentialing, and paid work experience (PWE) opportunities with area partner-employers. One such industry sector—Hotel and Tourism—celebrated its best year ever in 2017, as a major employer and contributor to the City of Long Beach economy, and recently expanded its pool of trained professionals when four KRA/K2C Academy customers were credentialed by the American Hotel & Lodging Association as Certified Front-Desk Representatives. Sheila Perhacs, one of the young
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Despite an MS degree in Chemical Engineering and 5 years’ experience as a Process Engineer, Ali was unemployed for almost a year after emigrating to the U.S., as most companies to which he applied required at least 6 months’ U.S.-based work experience. To overcome his catch-22 dilemma—how to get experience if he couldn’t get a job—Ali sought professional workforce services through the KRA San Diego Metro Career Centers, operated for the San Diego Workforce Partnership, where he met with Career Agent Zuri Williams. Zuri provided orientation and introduction to the wide range of resources available to support Ali, who commented, “Apart from
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 KRA Customers Anticipate A Happy Prosperous New Year Their stories could not be more different, in origin, but more similar in the trusted end-results achieved through the KRA San Diego Metro Career Centers, operated for the San Diego Workforce Partnership. Deborah Fernandez was a perfect candidate for the WIOA Dislocated Worker Program—after a job lay-off. She had a steady employment history—20+ years’ professional experience with higher-education institutions, plus 15 years as a U.S. Navy Hospital Corpsman. Christopher Johnson, on the other hand, was a perfect candidate for the New Beginnings Pathways to Employment Program—after serving 28 years of a 45-year prison
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