Return to Roots - Employer e-blast

This week marks the beginning of The 32nd Annual Highland Summer Conference, held at Radford University. It is a two-week lecture-seminar workshop that combines well-known Appalachian guest-writers with aspiring writers and students. I took the class in 2007 and the instruction I received not only made me a better writer, but opened my mind to so many different thoughts and possibilities. While it is too late to register for the class, it is not too late to take advantage of the true gem of the class—each Tuesday and Thursday of the 2 week class, there are readings and receptions by the visiting authors. These take place from 7:30-9:30 in the McConnell Library on Radford’s campus and all are free and open to the public.

The first week’s readings kick off tonight with Writer and RU professor, Jim Minick. Minick is the author of two books of poetry, Her Secret Song and Burning Heaven. Also he has written a collection of essays, Finding a Clear Path, and edited All There Is to Keep by Rita Riddle. Currently he’s working on a memoir titled The Blueberry Years.

Thursday, June 11, 2009 will feature a reading by Poet Crystal Wilkinson, who is conducting the first week of the Highland Summer Conference. Wilkinson is the author of two books, Blackberries, Blackberries (2000) and Water Street (2002), both published by Toby Press. Water Street was a long-list finalist for the prestigious Orange Prize and short-listed for a Zora Neale Hurston/Richard Wright Foundation Legacy Award in fiction. She is a faculty member in Spalding University’s low-residency MFA writing program and is currently serving as visiting professor and writer in residence for Morehead State University. Wilkinson was the 2002 recipient of the Chaffin Award for Appalachian Literature and is a member of a Lexington-based writing collective, The Affrilachian Poets.

Tuesday, June 16th’s reading brings us New York Times Bestselling author, Sharyn McCrumb. She is best known for her Appalachian Ballad novels including She Walks These Hills and The Rosewood Casket. Her most recent novels St. Dale and Once Around the Track, focus on the NASCAR culture in the Appalachian Mountains.

Thursday, June 18th and the concluding reading for the Highland Summer Conference will be by Cathy Smith Bowers, the conducting writer of the second week of the Conference. Cathy, an amazing writer is the author of The Love that Ended Yesterday in Texas, A Book of Minutes, and Traveling in Time of Danger.

All of these readings and the Highland Summer Conference are coordinated an sponsored by the Appalachian Regional Studies Center at Radford University.

For more information, contact Dr. Grace Toney Edwards or Ruth Derrick,
Appalachian Regional Studies Center
Call 540-831-5366 or 540-831-6152. E-mail rbderrick @radford.edu.

-Carl Mitchell

Carl Mitchell is the Program Manager for the Return to Roots program.

Everyone knows what a blue-collar job is, right? Many green-collar jobs are in familiar fields like manufacturing, construction, and maintenance and repair.

And like blue-collar jobs, many green-collar positions do not require a college or graduate degree. Rather, some additional technical skills and job training are often enough to ramp up workers for green-collar jobs.

For a job seeker, this can be good news. You may not need to learn entirely new skills in an entirely new field. Instead, a few months of training may be enough to "green" your trade.

A steel worker is working a green-collar job if he or she is building a wind turbine.

Another simple, yet essential, tenet of a green-collar job is that it is good for people and planet. The "people" part means workers in green-collar jobs must be paid a family-supporting wage, have safe working conditions, and have opportunities for career advancement. Pushing a broom for $7 an hour doesn't count as a green-collar job, even if it's a solar-panel factory you're cleaning.

Over the next 18 months, green-collar jobs are expected to grow significantly in the United States, mainly due to government investment through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (aka the stimulus package). This means more training programs that will give you a leg up in entering green-collar fields.

Look for growth in these fields below. This list illustrates the range of green jobs available, from "green-collar" to white-collar work in green fields:

Green Building Retrofitting -- Fixing up buildings so that they leak less energy helps homeowners save on energy bills, lowers the use of dirty energy, and creates jobs like:

- Energy auditor
- Green carpenter
- Insulation installer
- Environmental compliance specialist

Mass Transit and Transportation -- Clean mass transit options (trains and zero-emissions buses) that cut down on carbon pollution.

- Civil engineers
- Rail track layers
- Bus/train systems operator
- Urban planner

Renewable Energy -- Wind and solar energy are clean and safe energy sources, and rapidly expanding fields. It takes 250 tons of steel to make one wind turbine -- that's a lot of work for steel workers, many of whom are currently unemployed.

- Wind turbine machinist
- Solar and PV (photovoltaics) installer
- Iron and steel workers
- Solar operations engineer

The sixth episode of "JobQuest" began, June 9, with a special announcement from Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield, which plans to hire 25 people for its Roanoke office. Cindy Kinney, Anthem's Director for Human Resources, said most of the openings are direct sales positions in telemarketing and telesales. Kinney said more information about these jobs is available at www.anthem.com.

"Having a prominent employer like Anthem choose 'JobQuest' to make such a big announcement is a testament to the credibility of our program." said Julie Newman, "JobQuest" producer and host. "'JobQuest' is a valuable resource for job seekers across the region. We encourage people who missed the show to visit BlueRidgePBS.org for video clips, information about other jobs, and tips on how to get back to work."

Another special "JobQuest" guest was Doloris Vest, President of the Workforce Investment Board for Western Virginia, who described the many resources available through the numerous "one-stop-career-centers" across the region. Free services include a wide range of employment, training, and career education programs.

The program featured an additional 60 new job openings from across the Blue Ridge PBS viewing area, and more advice from the show's certified resume writing expert. Human resources professionals were again taking calls at the "JobQuest" phone bank and helping people in the Internet chat room. A couple social networking volunteers were also in the studio during the show, using Twitter to post microblogs about the live program.

"JobQuest" continues Tuesday, July 7 at 7 p.m. with another live, information-packed broadcast.

Email JobQuest at jobquest@blueridgepbs.org

Greetings from Return to Roots!

In this issue:

Introduction

Send Us Your Success Stories!

Interesting Jobs Available!

Virginia’s Great Southwest

Local Events of SWVA

Floyd Fandango Beer and Wine Festival

Sharyn McCrumb Among Readers at 32nd Annual Highland Summer Conference