Child Care Roundtable Discussion

JARI and The Learning Lamp are hosting a roundtable discussion to address child care needs across the region. Child care is a workforce issue that negatively impacts business operations. According to the Child Care Action Campaign, U.S. businesses lose $3 billion annually as a consequence of child care-related absences. Employer-supported child care improves employee recruitment, reduces turnover and boosts productivity. For every $1 invested in high quality early care and education, communities like ours can save between $4 and $17 in future costs for things like special education, juvenile justice and welfare support.

Join us and share your feedback on employee child care issues as well as ideas on how to improve services.

When: March 26, 2019 at 8:30 AM
Where: Penn Highlands Community College
Richland Campus, Workforce Education Center, Room A142

For more information and registration, please contact Debi Balog via email at .

Local Entrepreneurs Will Pitch to Win Up to $10,000 in Somerset!

Do you know Mark Barbera, Kirk Sherbine, Tim Kretchman, BJ Opett, Dan Morris, or Emily Mahler? For the past several weeks, these local entrepreneurs have been participating in a business startup accelerator program, the TechCelerator@Somerset. On March 14, 2019, they will each make a graduation “pitch” to a team of judges from the community. The winner will walk away with up to $10,000!

Come and support local entrepreneurs, each of whom will have the opportunity to share with the audience their intended target market, the problem, their solution and how their idea will make money for them and future investors. While the judges deliberate, stay to enjoy the fun networking reception, co-sponsored by the Somerset Trust Company and Uptown Works, that follows.

When:           Thursday, March 14, 2019 / 5:00 PM
Where:          Historic Somerset Trust Building – 131 N. Center Avenue
Why:              Local entrepreneurs will “pitch” for a cash prize of up to $10,000.

Join us for the presentations, but also stay and enjoy the reception! Click here to RSVP by March 9th!

About the TechCelerator@Somerset:

As an important component of the Startup Alleghenies initiative, www.startupalleghenies.com, the team at Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Central & Northern PA developed a curriculum that is providing Somerset County entrepreneurs, grad-students, faculty members, and emerging tech-startups with a weekly business training accelerator program.

Voting Open for the “What’s So Cool About Manufacturing?” Video Contest

Catalyst Connection will be hosting an award ceremony for students who participated in this year’s Explore the New Manufacturing Student Video Contest. Eleven regional schools were paired with 11 regional manufacturing companies to create a video with the theme “What’s So Cool About Manufacturing?” The program is one of many efforts to build awareness about career opportunities in manufacturing. Come celebrate the resurgence of manufacturing in the region, see the work created by regional students and network with regional manufacturing companies.

Click on the voting link to review the videos and cast your vote.  Click on the registration link to RSVP for the ceremony. JARI and the Somerset Chamber of Commerce are partners in this program. If you have any questions, please contact Debi Balog at 814-262-8366 or via at .