BMCC PRESIDENT ANTONIO PEREZ, NEW YORK CITY COMMISSIONER FOR BUSINESS SERVICES ROB WALSH, AND ACT PRESIDENT RICHARD FERGUSON CUT RIBBON AT NEW CENTER FOR WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT
April 15, 2003
Borough of Manhattan Community College unveiled a new, state-of-the-art Center for Workforce Development at 45 John Street recently. BMCC President Antonio Perez, New York City Commissioner for Business Services Rob Walsh, and ACT President Richard Ferguson all participated in the ribbon-cutting ceremony on April 3.
At the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new BMCC Center for Workforce Development are from left to right: Katee Tully, associate dean of continuing education and workforce development; Rob Walsh, New York City commissioner of business services; Acte Maldonado, dean of continuing education and workforce development; Sadie Bragg, senior vice president of academic affairs; Antonio Perez, president of BMCC; Richard Ferguson, president of ACT; Bill Murphy, director of business training services at BMCC.
Designed as a one-stop shop for professional development, the center provides assessment, career guidance, training, and industry recognized certification to individuals and employers. The Center for Workforce Development serves between 300 and 400 professionals per month.
“The Center for Workforce Development is a major asset to the downtown business community,” said Antonio Pérez, BMCC president.
BMCC President Antonio Perez at the April 3 opening of the Center for Workforce Development at 45 John Street.
A keynote speaker at the opening, Rob Walsh, New York City commissioner for business services, stressed the importance of the new Center for New York’s small businesses. Walsh pointed out that 90 percent of all New York City’s businesses were small businesses employing fewer than 100 people.
BMCC President Antonio Perez and ACT President Richard Ferguson at the opening of the BMCC Center for Workforce Development at 45 John Street.
The cutting-edge Workforce Development Center includes ACT Workforce Development Services, Work Keys, employability assessment services, high-stakes testing, customized training, and employment and career services.
“Our business training services are comprehensive, from assessment through professional certification,” noted Acté Maldonado, dean of the Center for Continuing Education and Workforce Development. “We make it easy for businesses to develop their best assets: their employees,” she continued.
BMCC is New York City’s only ACT Center providing unprecedented access to online courses and high-stakes testing. ACT offers an exciting array of computerized training and testing services for individuals, educational institutions, business, and other organizations. It has access to a virtual library of instructional software, enabling the center to provide on-or off-site individualized learning opportunities for employers, organizations, and individuals. Richard Ferguson, president of ACT, emphasized that patrons have access to over 3,000 online courses.
Work Keys provides businesses with comprehensive employee skills assessment tools that evaluate the key skills and levels of competency required for specific jobs. Work Keys also evaluates the key skills and levels of competency required for specific jobs, administers skill assessments to individuals to pinpoint their current skill levels, and compares the skill levels demonstrated by each test taker to the minimum skill level required for the profiled job.
The BMCC Center for Workforce Development also offers customized training to meet a company’s specific needs. Training can range from management seminars to English as a Second Language to information technology certification. Courses can be arranged at a company’s site or at BMCC’s fully equipped training center.
Employment and Career Services complete the comprehensive one-stop workforce development operation at 45 John Street. A team of employment specialists work with job seekers to create individualized career plans, and gain access to the appropriate education and/or training they need to find the right job.
Borough of Manhattan Community College was set to open the Center for Workforce Development in October, 2001, in Fiterman Hall at 30 West Broadway. However, Fiterman Hall was severely damaged in the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center and remains closed.
