National Apprenticeship Week coincides with a proclamation that

Gov. Branstad signed on October 12, 2015 and aligns with Future Ready Iowa

(DES MOINES) - Gov. Terry E. Branstad and Lt. Gov. Reynolds today highlighted events going on around the state that coincide with National Apprenticeship Week and as part of ongoing conversation to close the skills gap to create a Future Ready Iowa.  On Oct. 12^th, Gov. Branstad signed a proclamation designating November 2-8, 2015 as Registered Apprenticeship Appreciation and Awareness Week in Iowa.

Iowa is a leader in promoting apprenticeships. In the spring of 2014, the governor signed the Iowa Apprenticeship and Job Training Act into law which expanded access to apprenticeship training programs in Iowa by tripling the funding for apprenticeships and reforming and streamlining the program.  Lt. Gov. Reynolds recently held a press conference touting the growth of apprenticeships in Iowa.

Access to apprenticeship training in Iowa was further expanded thanks to the Iowa Construction Trades Apprenticeship Job Driven National Emergency Grant that includes both construction and non-construction occupations. The original grant in the amount of $6.175 million was provided for apprenticeship program expansion in six of the state's 15 Workforce Investment Act (WIA)/Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) Regions within the construction trades.  This has now been expanded to include all 15 WIA/WIOA Regions and to include construction trades, non-construction trades and businesses not previously certified. The latter will allow Iowa employers that utilize one or more of the 1,266 federally approved occupations for apprenticeships nationwide to consider the apprenticeship model.

"As Iowa continues to grow its economy, our businesses will continue to need qualified and skilled employees," said Governor Branstad. "Apprenticeship programs are a great way for employees to earn while they learn - while also getting businesses the access to talent they need."

Registered apprenticeship is an employer-driven model combining on-the-job learning with related classroom instruction to increase the apprentice's skill level and wages.  The Iowa Apprenticeship Program (15B) is administered by IEDA in coordination with the United States Department of Labor (DOL), Office of Apprenticeship (OA).

Iowa is one of the fastest growing states for Registered Apprenticeships. In fiscal year 2013-2014, Iowa saw a more than 20 percent increase. One of the newest programs to be launched is through the Technology Association of Iowa (TAI). This week, TAI will launch the Application Developer Registered Apprenticeship Program to train active professionals in programming logic and databases, testing framework, proficiency in creating server side interfaces, knowledge of development methodologies, and understanding of technical writing in a variety of programming languages.  Inquiries and information on the apprenticeship program through TAI should be sent to apprenticeship@technologyiowa.org or visit www.technologyiowa.org.

Lt. Governor Kim Reynolds added, "As we travel around Iowa, the governor and I constantly hear from employers who are in need of a skilled workforce?especially in manufacturing, information technology, STEM and health-related fields.  Our focus on apprenticeships in Iowa is a key avenue to fill the skills gap for employers and empower Iowans with rewarding careers.  Growing our talent pipeline is essential for the 21^st century global economy and a Future Ready Iowa."

The success of Iowa's apprenticeship programs is due to the engagement of partners - businesses, community colleges, state agencies, union stakeholders, trade associations and others - who are actively involved in expanding apprenticeships in Iowa. Those partners are embracing National Apprenticeship Week with events and activities planned around the state throughout the week and month.

Governor Branstad and Lt. Governor Reynolds will visit four Registered Apprenticeship Sponsors throughout the week, including Dalton Plumbing and Heating, Young Plumbing and Heating, Independence Plumbing and Dubuque Screw.

Representatives for the Iowa Building and Construction Trades group will celebrate National Apprenticeship Week by addressing the Iowa School Counselor Association to share how apprenticeship programs can build a pathway to career success.

"Educating high school counselors on just how students can benefit from exploring an apprenticeship opportunity in Iowa is an important part of the conversation," said Jason Shanks, training director for Plumbers and Steamfitters, Local 33. "Continuing education can take many forms, and Registered Apprenticeship programs are a proven way to prepare for a long and prosperous career path."

ABC of Iowa, a non-profit construction trade association, will hold its 2015 ABC of Iowa Apprenticeship and Training Trust Craft Championships on November 20 to highlight the work of apprentices across the state. During the event, apprentices compete in six events including Residential/Commercial Electrical, Commercial/Industrial Electrical, HVAC, Insulation, Plumbing and Sheet Metal. Winners of each advance to represent ABC of Iowa at the ABC National Craft Championships in Ft. Lauderdale, FL next March.

"Drawing attention to the professional work of our apprentices is the goal of the Craft Championships that we'll hold later this month," said Greg Spenner, president and CEO of the Associated Builders and Contractors of Iowa. "It is so rewarding to see the high-level work these apprentices are doing for companies around Iowa."

Several other events are scheduled throughout the week around the state - a sampling is below. For a complete listing, go to www.doleta.gov/oa/naw.

November 4, 2015

Event:                   IowaWORKS North Iowa and North Iowa Corridor - Employer Information Meeting

Location:              9 N Federal, Mason City, IA 50401

Time:                     3:30 - 4:30 p.m.

Details:                 IowaWORKS North Iowa and North Iowa Corridor are hosting an information meeting for employers interested in establishing a registered apprenticeship at their business. Rich Madden, U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Apprenticeship, is presenting.

Event:                   Hawkeye Community College Apprenticeship Open House and Luncheon

Location:              Hawkeye Community College, 1501 E Orange Rd, Waterloo, Iowa, 50701

Time:                     11:00 a.m.

Details:                 Open House and Luncheon Location

Point of Contact: Jerry Orr, jerry.orr@hawkeyecollege.edu, 319-296-2329 Ext. 3010

Event:                   IowaWORKS, Northwest Apprenticeship Fair

Location:              IowaWORKS Northwest, 217, Spencer, Iowa, 51301

Time:                     12:00 p.m.

Details:                 Point of Contact: Erin Pingel, erin.pingel@iwd.iowa.gov, 712-262-7662 ext. 132

Event:                   IowaWORKS, Iowa Valley "An Apprenticeship Conversation"

Location:              IowaWORKS Iowa Valley, 3405 S Center St., Marshalltown, Iowa, 50158

Time:                     2:30 p.m.

Details:                 IowaWORKS Iowa Valley is hosting a conversation event to increase awareness of local apprenticeship opportunities.

Point of Contact: Beth Severidt, lauren.severidt@iwd.iowa.gov, 641-844-6966

Event:                   Western Iowa Tech Community College Apprenticeship Open House and Luncheon

Location:              Western Iowa Tech Community College, 4647 Stone Avenue, Sioux City, Iowa, 51106

Time:                     11:30 a.m.

Details:                  Point of Contact: Dar Raye Hunwardsen, darraye.hunwardsen@witcc.edu, 712-274-6400

November 5, 2015

Event:                   IowaWORKS, Central Iowa Apprenticeship Lunch and Learn

Location:              IowaWORKS, 430 E. Grand Ave., Des Moines, Iowa, 50309

Time:                     11:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.

Details:                 IowaWORKS is hosting an Apprenticeship Lunch and Learn for employers interested in Registered Apprenticeship and the National Emergency grant that has been awarded in Iowa.

Point of Contact: Jennifer Reha, jennifer.reha@iwd.iowa.gov, 515-281-9620

Event:                   TMC Transportation Open House and Webinar

Location:              TMC Transportation Training Center, 5929 NE 22nd St, Des Moines, Iowa, 50313

Time:                     2:00 p.m.

Details:                 TMC Transportation will host an onsite and virtual Open House to celebrate National Apprenticeship Week.

Point of Contact: Cheryl Freauff, cheryl.freauff@tmctrans.com, 515-974-3447

Event:                   Governor Terry Branstad and Lt. Governor Kim Reynolds visit the following businesses during National Apprenticeship Week

U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Apprenticeship

Location:              Dalton Plumbing and Heating, 5536 Nordic Drive, Cedar Falls, IA 50613

Time:                     10:30 a.m.

Details:                 Point of Contact: David Krejchi, dkrejchi@daltonphc.com, 319-266-3513

Location:              Young Plumbing and Heating, 750 Hackett Road, Waterloo, IA 50701

Time:                     1:00 p.m.

Details:                 Point of Contact: Mark Tink, markt@youngphc.com, 319-234-4411

Location:              Independence Plumbing, 509 20th Ave SW, Independence, IA 50644

Time:                     3:00 p.m.

Details:                 Point of Contact: Richard Curry, iphci@indytel.com, 319-334-7008

November 6, 2015

Event:                   Governor Terry Branstad and Lt. Governor Kim Reynolds visit the following business during National Apprenticeship Week

U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Apprenticeship

Location:              Dubuque Screw Products, Inc., 6500 Chavenelle Road, Dubuque IA 52004

Time:                     9:45 a.m.

Details:                 Point of Contact: Matt Scherr, matt@dbqscrewproducts.com, 563-583-2770

November 4-6, 2015

Event:                   Iowa Department of Corrections Event Name: National Apprenticeship Week

Location:              Anamosa State Penitentiary, 406 N High Street, Anamosa, Iowa, 50319

Time:                     7:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.

Details:                 Clarinda Correctional Facility, Iowa Correctional Institution for Women, Newton Correctional Facility, Rockwell City Correctional Facility and Anamosa State Penitentiary will promote their apprenticeship programs and Apprenticeship Signing Days

Point of Contact: Tim Diesburg, tim.diesburg@iowa.gov, 319-462-3504 Ext. 2297

All week during regular business hours

Event:                   Missouri Valley Area Joint Apprenticeship and Training Committee (AJATC) Open House and Job Fair

Details:                 Missouri Valley AJATC will host visits and presentations during job fairs at its Iowa office, in addition to issuing press releases to honor National Apprenticeship Week.

Event:                   Northeast Iowa Community College National Apprenticeship Week Event

Location:              NICC Peosta, 8342 NICC Drive, Peosta, Iowa, 52068

Details:                 Point of Contact: Randy Schofield, schofieldr@nicc.edu, 563-557-8271 Ext. 115

The Scott County Sheriff's Office is holding an award ceremony where we are awarding our life saving ribbon for two separate incidents which happened earlier this year. The ceremony will be held Wednesday November 4th, 2015 at 9 am in the Sheriff's Office Pavilion Conference Room. Members of the public are welcome to attend.

First Incident:

On April 11th, 2015 at approximately 11:00 am, Scott Emergency Communications received a phone call for assistance with a man down at 781 W. Walcott Road Lot 134 in Walcott. Sgt. Jackson, Walcott Fire Department, and MEDIC Ambulance were dispatched to assist.

Sgt. Jackson upon his arrival found the person unresponsive and began doing CPR. He also deployed his AED and provided a shock to the patient. Upon the arrival of Walcott Fire Department they found Sgt. Jackson doing CPR and they took over patient care. The patient was shocked multiple times with the AED initially applied by Sgt. Jackson. If not for the initial actions taken by Sgt. Jackson, Walcott Fire Department believes the patient may have had a different outcome. Five days after this incident the patient was walking, talking, and on the road to recovery. The quick actions of Sgt. Jackson to apply lifesaving efforts reflect great credit upon himself, his community, and the Scott County Sheriff's Office.

The quick actions of Sgt. Jackson to apply lifesaving efforts reflect great credit upon himself, his community, and the Scott County Sheriff's Office. The Scott County Sheriff's Office Life Saving award is hereby awarded to Sgt. Robert Jackson for his life saving actions during this incident.

Second Incident:

On June 16th, 2015 at approximately 2:00 pm, Scott Emergency Communications Center received a 911 call from 11196 95th Avenue in reference to a subject being trapped under a lawn tractor that rolled over. Our deputies, Buffalo Fire Department, and MEDIC were dispatched to the scene. Also requested to assist was Buffalo Police Department.

Buffalo Police Department Chief Behning arrived on scene and he informed units the patient was turning blue from lack of oxygen. Chief Behning was able to use a large piece of lumber to lift the lawn tractor off of the patient enough in order for him to breathe. However, due to the weight of the tractor, Chief Behning was only able to lift the tractor a few inches. That was enough room to provide some relief to the patient.

Buffalo Fire Department Chief Adams and Fire Fighter Derrickson arrived on scene they assisted Chief Behning with lifting the tractor enough to where the patient could be pulled from underneath. Buffalo Police Chief Behning's quick thinking under pressure by using a nearby object to take the full weight of the tractor off the patient allowed time for Buffalo Fire Department Chief Adams and Fire Fighter Derrickson to arrive and assist in removing the patient from underneath the tractor. Without the quick actions of all those involved we fear there may have been a different outcome. The actions of all involved reflect great credit upon themselves, their community, and their agencies.

The Scott County Sheriff's Office Life Saving award is hereby awarded to Buffalo Police Chief Behning, Buffalo Fire Chief Adams, and Buffalo Fire Fighter Derrickson for their life saving actions during this incident.

Thursday, November 12

6PM-7PM

Black Hawk College, Moline, IL

Building 4 - Rooms 209-210

State legislators will be making important decisions about the future of energy in Illinois this year.  The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently made history by announcing that for the first time, it will require carbon to be treated as a pollutant.  This gives Illinois the chance to move towards a cleaner, more reliable, and affordable energy economy while creating thousands of jobs.  There are several proposals in Springfield that address energy issues that are under consideration this year and next.

Experts from several environmental organizations will give information on the Clean Power Plan and on the proposed Illinois Clean Jobs bill.  Representative Mike Smiddy will attend and provide his insight into overall energy issues in Springfield.

RSVP at www.ilenviro.org/qcforum or iec@ilenviro.org.  Call 217-544-5954 with any questions you may have.