Melissa Green has joined the Workforce Training staff at North Central Planning and Development. Green is a 2005 graduate of Winona High School and graduated from Ole Miss with a degree in Legal Studies.
“Melissa brings a wealth of experience to this position,” Jeanette B. Ringo with North Central Planning and Development District, said. “Our workforce program is excited to add Melissa to our team, and we feel she will do an excellent job serving the youth of Montgomery County.”
Green said she worked previously at law offices before being hired at North Central Planning and Development and returning home. Green works as a counselor with the Gateway Workforce Training program. The program is for teens and young adults ages 16-24 who are not enrolled in school.
It is available in Attala, Grenada, Montgomery or Yalobusha counties. Through the workforce training program, participants are given the opportunity to gain job skill training, enter into the workforce and receive assistance to further their education.
The program is on a first come, first served basis.
“If they’re younger, then we have to get consent from the parent,” Green said. She said right now the class has seven students and the goal is to get 15 students involved.
Over a period of six weeks, Green said the class teaches students how to dress for an interview, to work on their appearance, punctuality, their posture and body language while being interviewed.
“We then send them out into the workforce to work sites that we have,” Green said. She said some of their work sites are the WIC Office, Buddy’s, Little Saint’s, Lucy Lu’s and the City of Winona.
“We pay our students,” Green said. “We help them and teach them what to do. If the employer likes them, then they’ll keep them on.”
She said not only do they help their students, they follow them after the program. One-on-one counseling is also provided to help participants with short term and long term school and career goals. The ultimate goal of the NCPDD
“We provide job leads, if they go to school for a trade or go to college, then we still follow them for a year to see how they’re doing and if they need our help with anything,” Green said. “Also, a part of my job is recruiting more work sites and we’re looking to add to our list.”
Green said she wants to be sure that all of her students that come through the program are employed and remain employed.
“My goal is to have everyone that we help at every work site and have our work sites filled up.”