ACEnet is excited to announce an update in our Workforce Development program! With generous support from an Appalachian Regional Commission POWER grant through an Appalachian Sustainable Development program, we’ve been able to hire a Workforce Development Specialist, Erica Foltz, to coordinate, manage, plan, evaluate and supervise workforce development activities offered by ACEnet to create sustainable job pathways for marginalized community residents.
Erica will act as the primary facilitator of program design and implementation, identify programmatic best practices in recovery and reentry workforce development, with a focus on skill and ability development that will benefit the individual being trained, facilitate conversation with workforce support groups to identify and inventory gaps within sectors, and develop, coordinate, or deliver relevant workforce training opportunities, including life skills & employment readiness, to address these gaps.
Erica will facilitate the creation of Recovery-Friendly Workplaces among ACEnet clients and community businesses where our Workforce Development Program connects the newly trained Substance Use Disorder (SUD) Impacted Community Members, Justice-Impacted Community Members, and Survivors of Power-Based Personal Violence with job placement and employment opportunities with Food Sector Employers (food producers/processors/manufacturers with focus on ACEnet tenants and Southeastern Ohio businesses) and Adjacent Sector Employers (tourism, wood/manufacturing sector, food retail & foodservice operators, hospitality and accommodations).
Now we’d like to introduce you to Erica!
“Hello, my name is Erica Foltz and I am the Workforce Development Specialist here at ACEnet. I have a background in community outreach, mainly through Americorps and Ohio University, with a passion for community building.
During my time at OU I studied the intersection of socioeconomic status, public health, and ecology. Throughout my two service years with Americorps in the COMCorps program I had the opportunity to give back to the Athens community and learn from the folks that live here. I helped facilitate food access, connected at-risk youth to resources they needed, and helped build small pockets of community support.
I am excited to work with an organization that helps local businesses and community members build their own future, and I look forward to facilitating an awesome new workforce development program here at ACEnet!”
We’re all very excited to welcome Erica to our staff & can’t wait to see the great work she’s going to do!
