Met with President Trump
FRANKFORT, Ky. (June 15, 2017) — Gov. Matt Bevin today met with President Donald Trump, senior White House officials, U.S. cabinet secretaries and other governors for a discussion about workforce development. The meeting focused on how states can be involved in executing important apprenticeship initiatives, industry partnerships, and work-based learning in general.
“Every business leader I have met has emphasized the quality of our workforce as being one of the most critical considerations when deciding where to locate,” said Bevin. “Updated facilities, scholarship assistance, highly-focused training programs, and a clear path to employment, all bring financial opportunity and dignity to individuals while providing the skilled labor that growing businesses require.”
Bevin has launched several innovative new workforce development and apprenticeship programs over his first 18 months in office.
The $100 million Work Ready Skills Initiative is a statewide program aimed at developing a highly trained, modernized workforce to meet the needs of employers and promote sustainable incomes for Kentuckians. This bond fund infuses resources to expand career and technical education facilities and to upgrade school equipment to current and future industry standards through local partnerships between private industry and educational institutions. Additionally, the new $15 million Kentucky Dual Credit Scholarship Program enables high school students to earn college credit at no cost.
The Bevin administration has also unveiled the “Kentucky Trained. Kentucky Built.” apprenticeship campaign. While a significant number of employers in Kentucky already realize the potential in apprenticeships, this initiative seeks to devote more resources and identify new industries where apprenticeships can play a pivotal role. The new “Justice to Journeyman” apprenticeship program helps to ease the reentry of adult and juvenile inmates back into society upon their release, while helping employers find skilled employees.
Along with these initiatives, Bevin announced this week the creation of the Work Matters Task Force to address barriers to employment and promote workforce inclusion among people with disabilities, foster children, disabled veterans, and those burdened by past substance abuse or criminal records.
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