HACC Partners with William F. Goodling Regional Advanced Skills Center
York area employers, workers and high school interns all will find expanded critical job skills training opportunities afforded by a new partnership announced on Monday, October 24 between HACC, Central Pennsylvania's Community College, and the William F. Goodling Regional Advanced Skills Center in York.

Both organizations have been providing manufacturing and business training in York, especially for dislocated workers and incumbent workers upgrading their job skills.

"Partnering will create a synergy between the two organizations, giving HACC the benefit of a technical center base of operations and the Skills Center the benefit of HACC's regional presence in the business community;" said HACC President Dr. Edna V. Baehre.

Approximately 80-100 high school students come to the Skills Center for training through the High School Internship Training (HIT) program. Students from all the districts in York County are eligible to come to the Skills Center in their senior year for training in areas including welding, machining, electronic maintenance technology, Auto-Cad, information technology, healthcare, and geospatial information systems. The Skills Center offers a Geospatial Information Systems (GIS) Technician Certification Program and specialized GIS training. HACC has the first Geospatial associate's degree program in Pennsylvania.

"I look at this partnership as a regional advantage. Ninety percent of the Advanced Technology Centers throughout the United States that provide technical services and training and workforce development programs are affiliated with a community college. I believe the community will benefit not only from the local combination of resources, but from the ability to expand program development and leveraged training equipment purchases using the National Coalition of Advanced Technology Center (NCATC) process," said Chuck Thomas, president, William F. Goodling Regional Advanced Skills Center.

On Monday, October 24, HACC and the William F. Goodling Regional Advanced Skills Center combined their resources in a partnership to further expand job skills training opportunities in the York area. Signing the agreement are (in front) at left Edna V. Baehre, Ph.D., President of HACC and Bob Pullo, right, Chairman of the Advanced Skills Center Board of Directors. Standing are, left to right, Jean Treuthart, Director of HACC's York Center, Chuck Thomas, President of the Advanced Skills Center, Jim Fox, Dean of Workforce Development at HACC and John Brenner, Mayor of York.

YCEDC Prospect Inquiries Increase
Prospect inquiries to date in 2005 have almost doubled from 2004. Last year, YCEDC staff fielded 55 prospect inquiries. As of the last week of October, 106 inquiries have been received. Most inquiries are generated through the Business Retention and Expansion Program(BREP) and the Governor's Action Team(GAT). Inquiries also originate from companies looking to relocate to the York area and local companies that are expanding.

YCEDC, YCIDA & GASP Host Economic Development
Financing Seminar
YCEDC, in partnership with its sister organizations YCIDA and GASP, held the first annual Economic Development Financing Seminar. Over 60 members of the banking, legal, and accounting communities attended the program on October 5. Due to the success of the event, there are plans to hold a seminar annually. Future sessions would be geared towards two audiences, service providers and business owners, and held on alternating years.

The seminar highlighted financing programs that are available through YCEDC and its sister organizations, as well as state and federal programs. Guest speakers included representatives from the Commonwealth, local law firms and other non-profit organizations that offer assistance with financing programs.

 

For more information about available financing programs, please contact Kenetha Hansen at 717.846.8879 or email khansen@ycedc.org.

YCEDC Staff Attend Biotech Council Meeting
YCEDC staff recently attended the Biotechnology Resource Council meeting at York College. A representative of the Investors Circle of York (ICY) also presented a general overview of ICY as well as ways that ICY and the Biotech council could work together.

The York Biotechnology Resource Council was founded in October 2004. The council's mission is to leverage regional interest and experience to create a networking resource for biotechnology education, development, and economic opportunities. The group meets monthly, with an intent to organize people interested/associated with the bio tech industry. The Council will also fill a need for a support structure to new and growing bio tech companies.

York Outdoor Recreation Complex Update

The second public meeting for the Stadium District Physical Environment Vision planning process took place on October 25 at Westminster Presbyterian Church at 320 North Queen Street in York. The Murphy & Dittenhafer team presented draft recommendations to approximately thirty attendees.

Based on community input, the overall goals of the Vision Plan will be to weave the new stadium seamlessly into the urban fabric of the North End of York City in a visually stimulating manner; improve the quality of life for residents and businesses within the District; and provide a positive experience for visitors to the District; and act as a catalyst for adaptive reuse and redevelopment opportunities in a mixed-use North End that will benefit the City and the County - linked with similar projects within the Northwest Triangle, North George Street Corridor and the North East Neighborhood.

The team discussed three strategies to achieve these goals, and action steps that they recommend occur immediately (0-2 years), over the short-term (2-7 years) and over the long-term (7-20 years). The physical improvements would include gateways and streetscapes, vehicular/pedestrian accommodations, the Brooks Robinson plaza, parks and play areas, rail crossings, redevelopment and new development opportunities, and historic interpretation.

Breakfast Plus - Small Business Seminar Series
Where: Pennsylvania Room, York Fairgrounds, York PA
When: Friday, November 4, 7:30am-9am
Cost: $15 for Chamber members; $30 non-members
Register: 717.771.4582 or www.YorkChamber.com

Presented by Susquehanna Bank. Small Business Sponsor: ABN Leadership Group, Inc.

Use your brain potential to its fullest. If you've always thought brain theory was boring, think again. Now you can take a fun and interactive exploration of how our brain gets things done.

Discover if you are right or left-brain dominant and how this impacts the way you approach work, home projects, deal with co-workers, and even learn. In this fun and engaging workshop, you will learn the newest brain theories and how it applies to your work and life.

In this enlightening session, you will discover how to:

• Pinpoint if you are left or right brain dominant.
• Use each side of brain for the appropriate task.
• Determine the brain preference of those around you.
• Implement Whole Brain strategies for enhanced creativity.
• Be more comfortable with your dominant brain side and corresponding preferences.

Never again wonder why you or those around you do things a certain way. By session's end, you will gain a deeper appreciation for everyone's uniqueness and will no longer get frustrated by those who see things differently from you.

Registration begins at 7am and the meeting will start promptly at 7:30am.

2005 Board of Directors' Draw Down & Silent Auction
Where: Yorktowne Hotel, York PA
When: Friday, November 11, 5pm - 9pm
Register: 717.771.4575 or www.YorkChamber.com

Presented by the York County Chamber of Commerce and Harley-Davidson Motor Co., Inc.

You could ride off from the 2005 Draw Down on a Brand New 2006 HARLEY-DAVIDSON XL883 SPORTSTER or if you prefer... a check for $5,000! ONLY 200 TICKETS WILL BE SOLD!

Click here to select your Draw Down ticket number

Place your name in front of 300 top York area business leaders and guests at this fun and exciting event. To support the Chamber, attendees at this lively, upbeat dinner gather to enjoy a tempting buffet, vie for amazing prizes, and bid on valuable and unique items donated by Chamber members.

A Draw Down ticket is $125 and includes two buffets. Buffet only is $30 per person.

Partnerships available. For more information or to donate an item for the silent auction, please contact Mary Walker at 771-4575.

**Tags, Title and Insurance not included. Must be 18 years of age to participate. Winner may be required to deposit the amount necessary to cover applicable taxes ... (28% of value) prior to taking possession of the Sportster.**

Citizens Bank presents the Economics Club
Where: Yorktowne Hotel, York PA
When: Wednesday, November 16, 7:30am-8:30am
Register: 717.771.4585 or www.YorkChamber.com

Gold Sponsor: Wachovia Bank
Silver Sponsor: Stambaugh-Ness PC

November's Economics Club will feature the 2006 Economic Forecast.

About the Speaker, Jay H. Bryson, Ph.D., Global Economist - Wachovia Corporation Jay Bryson joined Wachovia in 1998 to provide analysis on financial markets and macroeconomic developments in foreign economies. Before joining Wachovia, Dr. Bryson was an economist in the Division of International Finance at the Federal Reserve Board in Washington D.C. From 1989 to 1992, Dr. Bryson was an assistant professor of economics at the University of Alabama. He also has lectured on international economics and macroeconomics at the School for Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University and at Georgetown University.

He has published in a number of academic and popular economic journals, and his comments on the economy regularly appear in the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, and USA Today. He also makes frequent appearances on CNBC and Bloomberg TV.

Dr. Bryson received his B.A. and Ph.D. degrees in economics from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Tools for Workforce Safety & Resource Management
Where: Rachel Carson Building Auditorium, PA Department of Environmental Protection
400 Market Street, Harrisburg PA
When: Wednesday, December 7, 8am-12pm
Register: 717.843.5054, ext.221 or www.mantec.org/events.cfm

As an employer you are confronted with ongoing changes to OSHA compliance, worker and workplace safety issues, and environmental resource concerns. This program is designed to specifically target the following topics: Hispanic Worker Outreach: Compliance Assistance Tools; and Cooperative Alliance Program. In addition, you will have the opportunity to learn about the Brownfield Redevelopment and Resource Management topics. Please mark your calendar and plan on attending this free program.

This event is brought to you by MANTEC, Inc. and presented by the Occupational Safety Health Administration and the PA Dept. of Environmental Protection Agency.

Please contact Kathy Barnaba March at 717-843-5054, ext. 221 for details.