Program helps Wyandotte County residents gain new skills and find job opportunities

Residents of Wyandotte County who are looking to gain new job skills or need assistance finding and applying for jobs can now get help through WYCO WORKS. The free program aims to help people facing employment challenges — people who are unemployed or underemployed, veterans, people with a disability, older adults or people who speak English as a second language — find and get jobs.

The program offers:

• Skills and career readiness assessments.
• Information about free training programs to learn new skills.
• Advice on resume preparation and employment opportunities.
• Guidance on community resources such as childcare and transportation.

While the Kansas City region is experiencing a slow and steady rebound from the recession caused by COVID-19, Wyandotte County’s unemployment rate lags its neighboring counties. Funded in part by a grant from the U.S. Economic Development Administration, WYCO WORKS is intended to strengthen the workforce in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

“The COVID-19 recession has had a significant impact on our community,” said Harold Johnson Jr., commissioner of the Unified Government of Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kansas, and chair of the MARC Board of Directors. “We have great jobs and great people in our county and WYCO WORKS will help connect those ‘Dottes’.”

WYCO WORKS is a partnership between Workforce Partnership; the Unified Government of Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kansas; and the Mid-America Regional Council. It is part of KC Degrees, a MARC program that helps adults in the Kansas City region earn a college degree or high-quality certificate.
Residents who are interested in these free services can sign up at KCDegrees.org/WYCOWORKS. The program is available to residents who are at least 18 years old and are eligible to work in the United States, and services are available in English and Spanish.

###

About the Mid-America Regional Council (MARC)
The Mid-America Regional Council serves as the nonprofit association of city and county governments and the metropolitan planning organization for the bistate Kansas City region. Governed by a board of 33 local elected officials, MARC provides a forum for the nine counties and 119 cities in the region to work together to advance social, economic and environmental progress throughout the region.

Beth Heslowitz, Workforce Development Program Director, 816-701-8241
Kristin Johnson-Waggoner, Public Affairs Director, 816-701-8219