Parenting Place, Goodwill Helping Job Seekers

The Parenting Place tries to meet all the needs of the parents who come through its doors.

Lately, those needs have revolved around employment, according to Sharon Sanders, Director of Family Services at The Parenting Place.

The Parenting Place has formed a partnership with Goodwill Job Connection to help its clients find work.

The partners are offering a series of employment skills classes that begin this week.

The “How Do I Find A Job?” workshops begin Friday, July 12 at The Parenting Place and will run for four Fridays in a row, Sanders said.

The workshops will be held from 1pm – 2:30pm each Friday.

“The workshops will deal with creating resumes, working on interview skills, filling out online applications,” Sanders said. “All of the upfront 'How do I get a job?' questions.

Participants will create their own resumes at the workshops, she said.

“The presenter from Goodwill will help everyone who comes create their own resume,” Sanders said. “Even the staffing agencies right now require you to take a resume with you.”

Local businessmen will help workshop participants work on their interview skills.

“You have to know what to say, how to act, how to present yourself in the best light possible,” Sanders said. “Sometimes people get a job interview but don't know what to say. We want to make sure you go on from there.”

Their clients often have difficult backgrounds, Sanders said.

“We want to make sure they know what to say when those difficult backgrounds come up in an interview, how do you answer those questions,” Sanders said.

You do not need a GED to take part in the workshops, she said.

Preregistration is required for these workshops. Call Sanders at 898-5583 to register.

On August 1, the Parenting Place and Goodwill Job Connection will hold an information session about acquiring certifications needed for certain jobs.

The info session will be held from 9am -12pm August 1 at the Parenting Place

“The session will cover retail, certified nursing assistant and manufacturing,” Sanders said. “There are two different manufacturing certifications that they offer that look really good to local employers.”

Goodwill Job Connection sponsors certification courses at Tri-County Technical College.

You do need a GED and a clean background to apply for the certifications, she said.

“They must be able to pass a drug test,” Sanders said.

Preregistration is required for the certification info session as well. Call Sanders at 898-5583 to register.

Both the certification info session and the workshops are open to men and women.

“We're trying to offer this to parents to help strengthen the family,” Sanders said. “That's our goal.”

Sanders said the Parenting Place has been talking with Goodwill Job Connection for some time about a partnership.

“We refer people to the Goodwill Job Connection office in Powdersville to help with job applications,” Sanders said. “Things are starting to turn around in the employment sector. People are getting more opportunities. We want them to be able to take advantage of them.”

Offering the skills classes and info session at The Parenting Place helps job seekers avoid driving out to Powdersville, helping them save money on gas.

“We want to make it as easy as possible for the people who have these skills,” Sanders said.

“Goodwill has a huge employment network right now,” Sanders said. “They are probably the go-to employment specialist right now. We are really excited to be working with them because they know what they're doing.”