Reforming Good Works

October 31^st, 2017, was the 500^th anniversary of Reformation Day, a movement that brought greater religious freedom and greater freedom of expression. The Reformation decreed that we are saved by grace alone, and our faith—not our works—is evidence of our belief. In light of this, I felt compelled to begin communicating again to explain what’s happening with LATROBE and show how our journey has evolved.

For the last two years I have worked with the Greater Memphis Alliance for a Competitive Workforce on an initiative to connect people to educational opportunities and employment opportunities in Memphis and throughout the Mid-South. The project focuses on career education and technical education through our two-year community college and short-term certification training.

This project provided insight into what Memphis needs, and it made us rethink LATROBE’s role in the community. We’ve expanded our services and now specialize in three areas: career readiness (workforce development for hard-to-place individuals), commercial readiness (business development for individuals who need help starting their own businesses), and, our newest specialty, campus readiness, which is safety and security development for organizations and institutions.

I have over 25 years’ experience in engineering, manufacturing, and workforce, and James, my vice president and husband, has over 25 years’ experience in education, safety, and security. His education and experience is invaluable, though, because it has taught him how to get hard-to-place people (i.e. people with backgrounds) back to work.

LATROBE isn’t alone in providing training and job-placement—the Arkansas Workforce Center, Tennessee Workforce Development Center, and local non-profit organizations provide similar services and training—but our advice to anyone we meet is this: Find an organization that provides case management. Why? Because you need someone to help you navigate the process. If you’re returning to the workforce but don’t have a qualified, skilled, experienced professional helping with your job search and serving as your advocate, you likely won’t find a job. 

We use assessment tools to determine unique interests and skills, and knowing that it takes more than training to land a job, we also hold your hand and walk with you every step of the way. LATROBE isn’t a staffing company. It’s part of the community.  We use technology, proven practices, and community relationships to help you get the job you want. Stay tuned for future posts on how we use technology to find solutions for job seekers through our Career Readiness portfolio.

Most parents would love for their child to be able to attend an elite college or university. Our son has the grades to attend any school in America, and we can afford to send him. But, he might tell us that instead of going to college, he wants to get his certification. We are okay with that because James and I know getting a college degree isn’t for everyone. In fact, in today’s job market, you don’t need a degree to jumpstart your career.

Earning a college degree is a great way to start your career, but as a community, we need to get back to being entrepreneurial and find ways to start our own businesses. Sometimes, learning a hands-on skill (i.e. a trade) teaches what you need to know to start your own business. LATROBE’s Commercial Readiness program can help you with this very thing.

I’m from Stuttgart, in the Arkansas Delta. James and I moved to the Memphis area when he, an associate warden at the federal prison in Forrest City, was transferred to the region. We relocated near Memphis because it put us squarely in the middle of everything: what’s happening in eastern Arkansas, and what’s happening in western Tennessee.

Memphis is our home—we’re going to retire here—so we’ve decided to get more involved in community affairs. LATROBE allows us to do that. By training job seekers, introducing them to employers, and helping individuals launch their own businesses, not only are we helping make the Memphis economy stronger and more diverse, we’re doing the same for the entire Mid-South economy! And, we’re helping reform our community. 

Transformed Thoughts of Good Works

Do not conform to the pattern of this world,

but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.

Then you will be able to test and approve

what God’s will is—

His good, pleasing and perfect will.

(Romans 12:2)

Have you ever witnessed your personal flip-flop on an issue? Have you ever been for something, until you were against it? Were you divided by corporate, fiscal obligations rather than moral, community responsibilities? These are the questions fueling my struggle in having a definitive position on the Keystone Pipeline.

I first became aware of promises of oil sands, or tar sands, in 2008. I was working for a Fortune 1000 industrial manufacturing company. We had a wear resistant technology that provided productivity gains in the processing and transporting of bitumen in the mines of Alberta Canada. I worked in Strategic Marketing, as an internal consultant to business unit leaders, evaluating the potential risks and financial rewards for investing resources into this adjacent energy sector. Back then, I was a proponent of oil sands, conforming to the thoughts of energy giants like Shell and Canadian Natural Resources Ltd, who were forecasting an economic boom.

Fast forward to 2011 and I was an entrepreneur opening a manufacturing consulting office in Port Arthur, TX--the terminal destination of a proposed pipeline to transport oil sands crude from Canada to the U.S. Gulf Coast ports and refineries. Our first ad in the local business journal ran in the same issue headlined by a story of protesters targeting the Keystone XL Pipeline.  I attended a community meeting as a member of the chamber of commerce, supporting the promise of jobs and economic stimulation expected from constructing the pipeline. What I walked away from that meeting with were alternate thoughts on the negative impacts on the community, both environmentally and economically.  This ignited my internal struggle as an industrialist vs. a concerned community citizen and the ongoing battle between my support of fossil fuels and renewable energy sources.  Most importantly, I wanted to know more about the real jobs numbers, both temporary and permanent.

Collage made from September 2011 issue of the  Port Arthur  Business  Journal

To read more on the jobs debate, read the argument presented by TransCanada, the company pushing for the pipeline expansion:  

http://keystone-xl.com/its-time-for-a-better-discussion-about-jobs/

Where do I stand on support of the Keystone Pipeline today? Admittedly, my support has transformed based on having different information and personal experiences.  I have watched local citizens not get jobs in favor of work crews temporarily relocated from other parts of the country. I have witnessed the destruction left behind when a pipeline unexpectedly bursts (re Mayflower, AR in 2013). And I have become weary of the current political debate that fuels more separation rather than solutions toward a real jobs plan. My faith lets me know that regardless of who is in the White House, one day we will know His good and perfect will on this matter. What are your thoughts on the Keystone Pipeline? Feel free to comment, or, send me an email at latanyua.robinson@gmail.com. If you like this post and want to catch up on some of my previous discussions, please visit the full Purposed Work blog at http://ltr-latrobe-mfg.blogspot.com/.

Serving Others in Good Works

As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another,

in good works of God's varied grace

(1 Peter 4:10)

Today, women all over the world are commemorating the 106^th Founders’ Day of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Incorporated. When I became an undergraduate member, almost twenty-five years ago, I became a part of that legacy of sisterhood and service. The tradition continues - Global Leadership Through Timeless Service – with program activities centered on significant issues affecting communities and families.

Although my undergraduate participation at the University of Arkansas occurred a lifetime ago, service to all mankind remains a major facet of giving back to the communities in which I live and work. Last week, we had our first 2014 session for Leadership Beaumont, whose mission is “to identify, cultivate and develop leaders who will serve and positively impact their community.” Current members and alumni participated in a group activity to bring awareness to poverty in our community. Entergy hosted the Poverty Simulation that included role playing on day-to-day realities in the life of low-to-moderate income families.  (To learn more about using this simulation, contact your local Entergy Community Relations Representative, or visit the following Missouri Association for Community Action site:

 

http://www.communityaction.org/Poverty%20Simulation.aspx

 

Years ago, I adopted the use of on-line banking, automatic bill pay, and other things that I consider as personal time-savers. My big take away from the simulation was the plight of people who operate with cash. In balancing the allotted time, it was difficult for me to remember to go to the bank to cash my paycheck (I played the role of twenty-five year old working full-time in a cafeteria) to have cash available to take public transportation, to pay for utilities, to buy groceries, etc. This was a challenge for a twenty-five year old. Imagine the number of elderly people in our communities, or even other individuals who are trying to be self-sufficient, but who do not have access to other technology conveniences that many of us take for granted. My other takeaway was the reality of generational poverty and the difficulty in breaking this cycle. For all of us who have been graced to rise above and to overcome obstacles to do better than our family legacy, we have to remember that we are the exception.

After the simulation, each of us was challenged to take the learning from the day back to our respective businesses and organizations and to develop action plans for how we would increase awareness about the realities faced by people who live in low-to-moderate income communities. My first step is the blog post. Going forward, we shall add an element on this subject in our community outreach in advancing awareness about job and career opportunities in manufacturing.

Each of us has a gift that should be used to serve the needs of others in our communities and families. What are you doing to show concern for others by acts of service to all mankind? Let us know by commenting or sending me an email at latanyua.robinson@gmail.com. If you like this post and want to catch up on some of my previous discussions, please visit the full Purposed Work blog at http://ltr-latrobe-mfg.blogspot.com/.