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HELPINGTODEVELOP

A STATEWORKFORCE

ne of the most serious problems in

Georgia is developing a workforce

that is ready and able to jump into

the growing state economy.

West Georgia was represented at a

recent panel discussion at the Coverdale

Legislative Office building in Atlanta. The

program, in part, was supported by R.K.

Redding Construction company in Bremen

and the Grow Haralson economic devel-

opment foundation, Sen. Lindsey Tippins,

Honda Precision Parts and You Science

The panelists included Mike Jeff, vice

president of Honda Precision Parts; Richard

Woods, state superintendent of the Georgia

Department of Education; Sen. Lindsey Tip-

pins, chairman of the Education and Youth

Committee; Mike Dunham, president of

Associated General Contractors of Geor-

gia; Phillip Hardin, CEO of YouScience, an

organization that has been heavily involved

with high schools in Haralson and Douglas

Counties; and Randall Redding, CEO of R.K.

Redding Construction in Bremen.

Most of the panelists have been working

the last few years to devise and recommend

to the state new methods of keeping stu-

dents in high school and providing them

the resources that they can utilize to make

more informed decisions about their future

careers.

“I was astonished to learn that the aver-

age age of a technical college student was

28 years old,” Redding said. “I wondered

what they have been doing the last 10

years. We realized our industry is aging out

because our construction superintendents

are typically 58 years old.”

“There is a skills gap and it’s real for

Honda,” said Dunham. “We just can’t find

enough qualified workers but we are excit-

ed that more students seem to be finding

their skills and aptitudes for manufactur-

ing because of the YouScience online pro-

grams.”

“Students today tend to have a very nar-

row road to success due to not realizing

what qualifications they require for cer-

tain jobs,” Hardin said. “But if we can assist

each student by showing he or she their

potential; it may be in construction, allied

health, education or manufacturing, it will

save them time and money in choosing the

appropriate career. They will understand

their talents are true.”

The Georgia Department of Education

has attempted to highlight STEM (Sci-

ence, Technology, Engineering and Math)

advancement, liaison with different agen-

cies, additional career counselors in the

schools and Dual Enrollment with high

schoolers able to finish the 12th grade and,

at the same time, enroll in colleges.

“We tried the last three years and You-

Science’s software has given students the

opportunity to get their focus in the right

career at an early age, furnishing kids the

right data for a successful career,” said

Woods.

You Science’s approach is to allow the

student the time and place to go online and

complete a program which measures stu-

dents’ natural abilities which gives the stu-

dent a better understanding of their inter-

ests. The data features 500 careers which

increases the student’s self-knowledge and

capacity to measure real career opportuni-

ties. The assessment creates 14 aptitudes

and 6 elements of interests, when combined

is a more effective method of expanding the

student’s vision.

“The online tool helps identify apti-

tudes like math and science and all sorts

of self-discovery which we can deliver to

school counselors,” said Hardin.

The Bremen initiative impressed the the

State of Georgia to pilot the YouScience

agenda to train high school students for

Post-Secondary and career accomplish-

ments. Other state education systems test-

ed the curriculum but the difference in the

West Georgia alliance is that the Bremen

Pilot Program was sponsored by the private

sector and Randall Redding.

RKR has always been interested in aiding

school systems with various educational

activities and YouScience and the Bremen

School System turned out to be a perfect

partnership,” said Redding.

Since then, Haralson County Schools

and Douglas County Schools have joined

the project with the aid of a $20,000 grant

to Douglas County by Redding and other

construction companies. The union of

RKR, Bremen High School System and

YouScience have paved the way for future

generations of students to find their career

earlier.

Sen. Tippin has backed the efforts of You

Science and the committee.

“The Pilot Program was based on a sam-

ple of different high schools,” he said. “The

usage of the instrument was needed to see

the value of the project at the front end to

administrators. We had to find out if the

program would work cost efficiency-wise

around the state. We have seen decisions

not working and the state spends $30 billion

a year on education.’’

STORY BY

GEOFF PARKER

R.K. REDDING CONSTRUCTION

I was astonished to learn that the

average age

of a technical college student

was

28 years old.

I wondered what they have been doing the last 10 years.

—Randall Redding

CEOof R.K. Redding Construction

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