Apprenticeship in Motion (AIM), a program of the West Virginia Development Office, is offering a series of free summits across the state in April and May. Business leaders can find out how to take an active role in developing highly skilled workers through apprenticeship programs.
The next summit takes place Tuesday, April 24, in Martinsburg. The summits are open to the public and free to attend. To learn more or register for a summit, visit WestVirginia.gov/Apprenticeship.
AIM lets West Virginia business and education executives learn from senior business leaders across the nation about how apprenticeship has been an effective training model for their workplace in healthcare, manufacturing, high-tech, information technology, cyber security, logistics, tourism and hospitality. Attendees can talk to other businesses and industry stakeholders about the challenges and opportunities for workplace development.
The series of seven summits kicked off in South Charleston and Parkersburg.
“The AIM planning committee hit it out of the park at the first two summits,” said Girish Seshagiri, Senior Vice President of the globally recognized software development firm ISHPI. “As co-chair of the newly created National Institute of Standards (NIST) National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education (NICE), I came away from the first summit impressed with the potential for the Mountain State to be one of the leaders in the country in using apprenticeships to build pathways to jobs in cybersecurity.”
Seshagiri continued, “Thanks to the work of this program from the West Virginia Development Office, the young people of West Virginia will find successful technical careers without having to move out of state.”
Throughout April and May, AIM will host seven summits around the Mountain State. Summit attendees will hear from senior business leaders from across the country about why apprenticeship has been an effective training model in their workplaces. Attendees can access information and resources to get started on developing an apprenticeship program in their small businesses or companies.
The remaining AIM Summits are:
Martinsburg—Tuesday, April 24
Weirton—Wednesday, April 25
Huntington—Thursday, April 26
Fairmont—Tuesday, May 1
Oak Hill—Wednesday, May 2
AIM WV is the result of the cooperative teamwork of the West Virginia Development Office has teamed with the West Virginia Department of Education, WorkForce West Virginia, the Robert C. Byrd Institute at Marshall University and the Community and Technical College System of West Virginia. The working group of partners identify, standardize and develop courses that are needed statewide to provide companies the tools and resources they need to integrate apprenticeship programs into their current training and human resources strategies.
AIM Summits are being funded through a grant obtained from the U.S. Department of Labor.
