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November 20, 2003

Accent on Excellence Breakfast Honors ULM Professors and Program

The annual CentryTel "Accent on Excellence" Breakfast was held Wednesday, November 19, 2003 at the Monroe Civic Center Conference Hall at 7:30 a.m. "Accent on Excellence" is an annual event held to honor outstanding educators and educational programs at Monroe City and Ouachita Parish Schools and at the University of Louisiana at Monroe.

The Faculty honored at the breakfast were the ULM Outstanding Faculty Award recipients for 2003. They are: Dr. Helen Lock, associate professor of English; Dr. Jose L. Cordova, associate professor of computer science; Dr. James T. Hood, professor and head of the department of accounting; Dr. Mark S. Doherty, associate professor of kinesiology; and Dr. Paul W. Sylvester, associate professor and B.J. Robison Endowed Professor of Pharmacology.

The ULM Incumbent Worker Training Program (IWTP) was selected as the ULM program honored. The IWTP provides competitive grants for Louisiana based businesses to provide training for their current workforce. IWTP is a three-way partnership between the Louisiana Department of Labor, training providers and business/industry. This training is to increase employee skill level as well as provide cross-training opportunities. To date, ULM has been awarded IWTP grants exceeding $8.3 million to train over 5,900 north Louisiana employees.

The ULM Incumbent Worker Training Program has reached out to local businesses to support their efforts to secure funding to enhance the skills of their employees. Support has been offered in the form of one-on-one consultations as well as grant writing seminars. The IWTP program at ULM has helped to develop and secure funding for 15 grants that have included businesses in 33 different locations. Training for the businesses, arranged by IWTP staff, is customized for employees' needs and includes non-credit courses as well as courses that yield University credit. The diverse businesses that are served through the ULM IWTP program include assisted living facilities, a financial institution, a food service company, a building supply company, a real estate company, major manufacturing companies, and a regional medical center.

The IWTP program at ULM has been recognized statewide as a model program. The staff has made presentations at other universities, and the companies who have received grants have been featured in videos promoting Louisiana's Incumbent Worker Training Program. By the end of the currently funded grants, a total of 5,978 employees will have been trained through ULM IWTP grants, the funding for which is $8,386,982. The University of Louisiana at Monroe is pleased to be a part of the lifelong learning opportunities presented through the Louisiana Incumbent Worker Training Program.

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