New website unveiled for Workforce Investment Board

    CARIBOU — The Aroostook and Washington County Workforce Investment Board has launched a new website to better inform the public and business about programs, contacts and successes of the organization.
    Workforce Investment Boards (or WIBs) are regional entities created to implement the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 through local partnerships and public sector participants that provide planning, guidance and oversight for all workforce readiness programs in their designated area.
    The new website, www.northeastworkforce.org, will feature the organization’s weekly reports, minutes from board meetings, program and partner links and information about the organization.
    Ryan Pelletier, director of economic and workforce development at Northern Maine Development Commission, said this site will also focus on the people the WIB initiatives have served.
    “If you look at the banner at the top of the webpage you will see pictures of our actual participants who have signed releases for their stories to be told,” said Pelletier. “What we really hope people take away from this website is our programs actually do make a difference in people’s lives.”
    One of the peopled highlighted is a single father who was laid off. At the Career Center he found out about assistance, both tuition and child care, which allowed him to take the wind energy tech program at Northern Maine Community College and now he graduated and is employed in the wind energy industry.
    Pelletier said the website will fill a real need for the organization.
    “It’s important that the Workforce Investment Board have its own presence on the web, we are affiliated with NMDC and other partners, such as the Career Centers and Department of Labor, but we want to have our own identity so people know about workforce training opportunities in both Washington and Aroostook counties,” he said. “I think when someone goes to the website they will see policy directives coming from the Workforce Investment Board to target those training dollars to specific needs of the job seekers are really being directed by a board of business leaders from Aroostook and Washington counties who understand the needs of employees in the region and I think have a better handle on the needs of the region than an organization say in southern Maine or out of state.”
    Barry McCrum, chairman of the Local Workforce Board envisions www.northeastworkforce.org to be a clearing house of all WIB activities.
    “What we are trying to do is design it so that the content on the site is going to feature what we are doing at that time, so it will be easy for staff to upload new information and put it in one warehouse, so to speak,” he said.
    The site in time will also become less document heavy and more interactive, one plan in the works is to use GIS (geographic information system) mapping on the website to better show where and who is using WIB programs.
    Content will be added to the site in the next few weeks.