Crossett, a small community in southeast Arkansas, is doing big things when it comes to workplace readiness.
Several organizations in the Ashley County town have partnered together to develop an approach to workforce development beginning at the high school level onward. Three programs have helped to spur the city in the direction of the future, making Crossett a city that people want to live and work in.
Crossett has recently unveiled its ACT Workready Community Program. The initiative provides workers with a certificate and a breakdown of their scores from a testing system given by ACT. The certificate will prove to employers the potential employee’s skill level in three categories.
The employee may also use the certificate to identify weak areas in an employee’s skill set to provide providing feedback what skills to improve in order to make them more employable.
Crossett also recently announced its Fraternity of Advanced Manufacturing Education (FAME) program. This collaborative effort between the University of Arkansas at Monticello-College of Technology Crossett, Georgia-Pacific Crossett Paper Operations, Crossett High School and the Crossett Economic Development Foundation allows high school graduates to work in the mills two days per week and attend program classes three days per week.
This paid apprenticeship program can go toward to an applied science degree after two years. In addition, companies in the program are covering the cost of tuition and books. Any student that successfully completes the program will be guaranteed a job at Georgia-Pacific.
Crossett
Population: 5,128
Mayor: Scott McCormick
County: Ashley
Region: Southeast
Did You Know?
Crossett is well-known for its vast forestlands. In 1912, the city’s founders formed a relationship with the School of Forestry at Yale University. That partnership eventually led to research studies at the Crossett Experimental Forest, about seven miles south of town, that focuses on silviculture of loblolly and shortleaf pine forests.
Crossett was also chosen as a participant in Forward Arkansas, a partnership between the Walton Foundation and the Reynolds Foundation.
Forward Arkansas brings together people from all walks of life to address the diverse needs among a community. Because of this program, local industry leaders have begun an initiative to build a new high school.
The current high school, built in 1959, has not been able to keep up with modern technology as some classrooms only had two electrical outlets.
A campaign was created and a millage was passed to allow a new, $18 million modern facility to be constructed.
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