BR Proud
BATON ROUGE, La. (BRPROUD) — A $1.8 million program focused on improving Baton Rouge’s workforce will be in front of the Metro Council Wednesday night for final approval.
Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome, the Baton Rouge Area Chamber, and Visit Baton Rouge seek final approval from the Metro Council to use $1.8 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds to invest in the workforce. According to the mayor’s office, the program contains three initiatives:
- Re/Connect to Jobs: This initiative helps all job seekers find the available jobs, goes into communities to assist, and guides individuals to new upskilling and training resources.
- Youth Workforce Initiative: This program will prepare and better retain talent with real-work experiences while they are in school, colleges, or universities.
- National recruitment of tourists and talent: Bring more tourists and bring more talent to East Baton Rouge Parish.
Specifics of these initiatives include hosting job fairs and working with nonprofits to reach out to unemployed or underemployed residents, connecting high school and college students with internships in the area, and marketing campaigns to draw people outside of Baton Rouge to work in the city or visit.
The mayor’s office said Visit Baton Rouge and BRAC will focus on a marketing strategy to draw people to the city.
“Visit Baton Rouge and BRAC are collaborating on an integrated external marketing strategy to promote quality of life and job opportunities in Baton Rouge for prospective talent, drive greater visitation to the market, and highlight career opportunities in the region through the BR Works regional jobs portal,” Mayor Broome’s office said in a news release. “This effort might be amplified locally by increasing the region’s perception of itself, thereby increasing the likelihood that young professionals will choose to stay in Baton Rouge rather than relocate.” Metro Council meets at 5 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 21.
Original source can be found here.
