COMMITTEES:

• Connecting Business and Education Committee
• Executive Committee
• Marketing Committee
• Membership and Management Committee
• Southwestern Illinois workNet Committee (formerly Continuous Improvement Committee)
• Supporting Economic Development
• Youth Council

CONNECTING BUSINESS AND EDUCATION COMMITTEE

Purpose
To create sustaining partnerships between employers and education in order to offer students an educational experience and a curriculum that will establish a well-prepared quality workforce in Southwestern Illinois. Committee membership consists of employers, educators, chamber of commerce personnel, representatives from trade unions, and Workforce Investment Board staff.

Activity
Survey businesses to assess their involvement in school programs in areas such as mentoring, providing internships, job shadowing opportunities, participation in speakers bureaus and career fairs; and, create an interactive website and database intended to serve as a resource to partner employers with schools and students.

Goals
Enhance the quality of career and guidance counseling in public schools, the Illinois Employment and Training Centers (One-Stops) and the community colleges; develop training and workshop opportunities for career guidance staff that includes visits to businesses in order to better identify skills needed for success; make vocational high school curricula more enticing to students and parents; reduce the dropout rate; and, offer appropriate skills to improve the academic performance of students in Southwestern Illinois to better prepare them to successfully enter the workforce.

Sam Guarino
Charles Juneau, Chair
Janice Romack
Gerry Schuetzenhofer

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

Purpose
To serve as the oversight committee of all standing and ad-hoc committees and as the official authority for the Workforce Investment Board in all matters presented to the Board. Members include officers and committee chairs.

Mr. Rod Wolter, Executive Committee Chairperson
R G Wolter, Inc.
Tel: 659-9142

Executive Committee
Kelly Cobb
David Holtgrave
Charles Juneau
Jim Pennekamp
Laura Reed
Gerry Schuetzenhofer
David Stoecklin
Rod Wolter, Chair

MARKETING COMMITTEE

Purpose
To create a consistent flow of information to the Workforce Investment Board members, employers and local media.

Activity
Steps were taken to coordinate a regional marketing effort with the Mid America Workforce Investment Board in order to assess employer needs in the Southwestern Illinois seven county region. A survey was created to assess employer workforce needs.

Goals
Survey the workforce needs of employers. The findings gleaned from this project will allow the Workforce Investment Boards to create a consistent flow of information with local media, employers and Workforce Investment Board committees.

Dale Chapman (Val Harris, Proxy)
Kelly Cobb
Walter Hunter
Laura Reed, Chair
David Stoecklin

MEMBERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE

Purpose
To assist the Local Elected Officials with the establishment and maintenance of a Local Workforce Investment Board that meets the requirements of local, state, and federal guidelines.

Activity
Annually recommends a slate of officers to the full membership; and, guides the Workforce Investment Board in its general management as well as the management of its committees.

Goals
Assure that Workforce Investment Board members are kept informed of all state and local issues pertaining to workforce development; maintaining an active membership; assuring continuance of the annual awards banquet; oversight of the production of an annual report in cooperation with the Marketing Committee; periodically reviewing Board strategies; and, development of a Workforce Investment Board member orientation plan for new members.

David Stoecklin, Membership & Management Committee Chairperson
Program Administrator, Madison County Employment & Training Department
Tel: 692-7040

Membership & Management Committee Members

Dale Chapman (Marty Brawn, Proxy)
Jack Minner
Joe Skosky
David Stoecklin, Chair
Chuck Unger

SOUTHWESTERN ILLINOIS workNET COMMITTEE (formerly CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT COMMITTEE)

Purpose
Examine the activities of the Southwestern Illinois workNet Center and the represented partners; to provide guidance to the Southwestern Illinois workNet partners in regard to the mission and vision of the Workforce Investment Board (WIB); provide assurance that the performance of the Workforce Investment Act (WIA), and the Title I programs, are routinely examined; that the Title I administrative entity is fulfilling the requirements of the Workforce Investment Act; and, that all partner program performance is monitored at least annually to insure that quality programs and services are delivered to the customers at the Southwestern Illinois workNet Centers.

Activity
Revision of the Alton One-Stop Business Plan; and, training for and utilization of the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) G-Stars system.

Goals
Provide cross-training to IETC staff; enhanced marketing of the Illinois Employment and Training Center in coordination with the Marketing Committee; and, assist with the promotion of the Virtual Video Interviewing System.

John Bitzer
Dale Chapman (Marty Brawn, Proxy)
Bob Chappell
Robert Clark
Rhonda DeGonia
Mark Frank
David Holtgrave, Chair
Kevin Schmidt
David Stoecklin (Debra Angleton, Proxy)

SUPPORTING ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE

Purpose
To assist in connecting workforce programs and services to local economic development initiatives in order to enhance both the local workforce and local economy.

Activity
Surveyed entrepreneurs, service providers and community leaders in the Southwestern Illinois Counties of Bond, Clinton, Madison, Monroe, St. Clair, Randolph and Washington. The intent was to identify catalysts to generate a more robust entrepreneurial climate throughout the region in order to create new jobs, easier access to startup capital and higher success rates among startup companies. Entrepreneurial focus groups were also conducted to discuss the challenges of starting and sustaining new businesses. The survey was taken in advance of the “Southwestern Illinois 2005 Entrepreneurial Summit: Bridge to Economic Growth” held on October 20, 2005 and the findings were presented at that time. Collaborators included the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, Leadership Council Southwestern Illinois, Madison-Bond Workforce Investment Board, Madison County, Mid America Workforce Investment Board, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, Southern Illinois University Entrepreneur Center, St. Clair County and the Tri-City Regional Port Authority.

Goals
Collaborate on a second Entrepreneurial Summit in 2006; nurture a climate to promote entrepreneurs in Southwestern Illinois and strengthen existing businesses; concentrate on identifying ways to reduce regional “brain drain”; actively encourage professionals to return to the area; and, address a growing shortage of healthcare professionals through the efforts of the Critical Skill Shortages Initiative (CSSI), funded through the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity. CSSI is designed to align regional workforce programs and identify occupations displaying a current and potentially future shortage of workers and skills needed to meet the needs of employers and job seekers in the region.

Don Abert
Gary Giamartino
Jim Pennekamp, Chair
Jim Pulley
Bruce Rezabek
David Stoecklin
James Underwood (Eva Rawlings, Proxy)

YOUTH COUNCIL

Purpose
To assist eligible youth in the counties of Madison and Bond. The Board, in cooperation with the Local Elected Official, appoints the Youth Council. Youth Council membership includes Workforce Investment Board members, representatives from business, youth service agencies, public housing authorities, parents of eligible youth, law enforcement representation, and the Job Corps program.