Welcome Roundtable Members!!!
This is the first VCU-RRTC Business Roundtable
e- Newsletter! The purpose of this newsletter is
to communicate "Highlights" regarding Roundtable members, new
business resources, as well as to provide updates on the VCU-RRTC research
projects. The e-newsletter will be disseminated quarterly.
We would like to ask for your feedback to the e-newsletter. For example, do you like the format, suggestions for topics, is it easy to read. Please send your response to Katie Thompson.
Project 1: Partnership Employment Project (PEP)
Currently, three of the PEP sites, Norfolk, VA, Atlanta, GA, and Miami,
FL, have received training and have begun the project. Both Manpower and
the Community Rehabilitation Providers have been eager to get the project
started. Cobb County Community Services Board and the Lithia Springs Manpower
office have already made two job placements for PEP participants. The
fourth site, Huntsville, AL will receive training and begin the project
the first week in August. A fifth site for the project will be identified
in the next few months.
Project 2: Business Mentor Program
The Business Mentor Program is getting geared up and scheduled to kick
off November 2005! We want to recognize Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield
who has already recruited fourteen mentors for the study! We need to recruit
additional mentors from our organizations and business partners. If you
would like to be a mentor, know someone who would like to be a mentor,
or have ideas for recruiting, please contact Katie
Thompson. We will be in touch
with the Mentor Committee soon to get ready for November.
- On May 4th, 2005 the Richmond Human Resources Management Association (RHRMA) and the Greater Richmond Chamber of Commerce held their annual Employer All Star Awards breakfast. We are happy to report that one of our Roundtable members, Anthem won this award in the large company category. Deborah Barnett accepted the award for Anthem. Congratulations to Debbie and all the wonderful employees at Anthem.
- Roundtable member, Rose Lee Archer, Producer and Host of Rose Lee Productions, Inc. was named the winner of the South Florida District 2005 Small Business Journalist of the Year by the U.S. Small Business Administration. Congratulation Rose Lee!
- We are excited to report that Michael Shriver, Executive Vice President of Support Services with MBNA has received a promotion. Mike is now the President and Executive Director of the MBNA Foundation. The Foundation oversees Community Relations, Scholars programs and Grants. He will continue to manage the Support Services Divisions. Mike was one of our key presenters during the February 2005 VCU-RRTC Business Roundtable meeting.
Best Practices & Business Resources
Neil Romano, President of The Romano Group and America’s Strength Foundation spoke to the Roundtable regarding the Gallop Survey to identify consumer attitudes toward companies that hire people with disabilities. The study is complete and the results are very compelling. The preliminary results definitely show that the public across all ages, education and regions look favorably on companies that hire people with disabilities. Very soon an announcement and media splash regarding the results of the survey will be unveiled. Neil is continuing to work on the America’s Strength web site. It should be active soon!
U. S Chamber of Commerce Center for Workforce Preparation (CWP) conducts a pre-conference forum for the White House Conference on Aging entitled “The Voice of Business on the Mature Workforce”. The event was on June 15, 2005. Please view the webcast available on the CWP web site.
National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (#H133B040011)
|
: 804.828.9548 or 804.828.2494 (TTY) | : 804.827.0735