Our weekly program, Making Democracy Work, is a collaboration between KSMU Radio and the League of Women Voters of Southwest Missouri. It's hosted and produced by volunteers from the LWV, and it airs each Monday morning at 9:45 on KSMU.
In this episode, Maggie Castrey speaks with Katherine Proctor, communications coordinator for the Missouri Job Center.
Castrey: We know a healthy democracy requires that students be able to support their basic needs, which includes gainful employment, and your work directly impacts that, Katherine. Where are you located, and how can people find more information about Missouri Job Center's services?
Proctor: Well, thank you, Maggie, that's a great question. We actually have two locations in our seven-county Ozark region. Our main campus is in Springfield. We're near the intersection of Boonville and Pacific streets, just a block south of historic Commercial Street. And then we also locate or operate a satellite location in Branson...We serve seven counties in (the) Ozark region, besides Greene — Taney and Stone, Dallas, Christian, Polk and Webster.
Castrey: Katherine, are there any fees for your programs or how are your services funded?
Proctor: No, there are no fees associated with the services we offer. We are funded through several different funding streams. We get a portion of our money through the Workforce Innovation and Opportunities Act, and that is something that is allocated by Congress each year through the Department of Labor. It's given to the states and then the states then divide it between each of the workforce regions. That's one chunk of funding we have. And then we also have competitive grants that we write for. We get funding from like the Department of Labor, Department of Commerce and EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) for some competitive grants in which we were able to offer training. So that's how we're able to provide these services for free to the community.
Castrey: How has the Missouri Job Center helped people find gainful employment in the past year?
Proctor: First off, we offer hiring events. We organize these events several times a year, and we have a wide range of employers who participate in those hiring events. Then we also help people with customized job searches. You know, our staff will work with job seekers to update their resumes and then get on our MO jobs system to apply for jobs in our area. We also offer short term training programs through those funding streams that I mentioned earlier. And we also enroll people in registered apprenticeships.
Castrey: How many people used your services last year, and what age groups come to you for help? Like, what's a typical student?
Proctor: Our fiscal year actually runs July 1st through June 30th. So, last year ending June 30th, we saw over 13,000 people come to the job centers in Springfield and Branson. And then through our funding, we have two different groups that we help young adults ages 14 to 24 with career readiness and job training. And then we also help adults 25 and over with short term career training and especially those who have been laid off. We have special funds to help re-train those folks for new careers. We actually offer job training in five areas that have been identified as high need areas, and those are manufacturing, healthcare, IT, construction and transportation and logistics.
Castrey: That's a wonderful variety. Do you face new or different challenges today compared to years past?
Proctor: So, the emergence of AI and how to teach job seekers to learn to incorporate AI in their skill sets is something that is definitely an emerging topic with a lot of people. Our focus now is on what we're calling the future ready skills — those skills that people need in order to adapt and change. As AI is incorporated in more career paths, the AI revolution will change the way people work, but our focus is giving people the skills they need to be able to grow in their jobs from now until as long as they need them.
Castrey: Are there any limitations on who is eligible to use your services?
Proctor: With our wheel of funding, there are income guidelines and barriers that are attached to that funding. That funding stream is set aside for folks who maybe can't afford to go to college or maybe they have barriers in their life that have prevented them from continuing their education, so things that they need to qualify for in order to receive that training. However, our competitive grants that I was talking about earlier in registered apprenticeships as well, there are no income guidelines attached to that. Really, the only thing is you need to be 18, and you need to live in, like, the service area that the grant services, and that's really it.