| Two weeks later, California is still burning. We don’t know how long before the last embers stop smoldering. We don’t know the cost of replacing what’s been lost. We will never know all the heirlooms and stories that went up in smoke. But we do know the rebuilding will take a long time — and right now, there aren’t enough qualified workers to get the job done. Not yet, anyway. Construction, disaster recovery, manufacturing — these aren’t just employment sectors. They’re people: the ones who will put Southern California back together, piece by piece, brick by brick. As the Sullivan Training Network ramps up — which you’ll read all about below — we’ll need every one of the new workers about to be plugged into our economy. Their numbers are growing. They’re undergoing training, and in just two to five months, they’ll go to work with industry-recognized credentials for the most in-demand fields we have. There are no throwaway people. From Los Angeles to Asheville to St. Petersburg and everywhere in between, they will be the rebuilders. This is the kind of work that creates not just a physical transformation, but a transformation of the lives of the workers themselves. We believe in this transformation. Even the strongest disaster can’t tear that down.  Louis J. King II President and CEO OIC of America, Inc. |
NBA Foundation and OIC of America Spread STEM Education Nationwide
Last month, OIC of America announced a collaboration with the NBA Foundation that will expand free STEM educational programming for students and their families in Minneapolis and Portland, Ore. In both cities, K-12 students will have opportunities to connect to knowledge and skills in science, technology, engineering and math through interactive, hands-on activities.
OIC of America was included in the NBA Foundation’s recently announced 13th round of grants, committing over $5 million to 31 nonprofit organizations across NBA team markets.
“Supporting STEM education and access falls directly in line with the NBA Foundation’s mission to provide economic and career advancement opportunities for youth,” said NBA Foundation Executive Director Ruth Jurgensen.
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How Do You Rebuild a Country? One Worker at a Time.
Too many Americans have been forgotten or barred from meaningfully participating in today’s economy. Yet, millions of employers need skilled, ready-to-work hires.
The Sullivan Training Network is breaking down these barriers and bridging the gap: We are training students with the skills employers need to meet the national labor demands of today and the future.
Over the last six months, the Sullivan Training Network — named for our founder, Rev. Dr. Leon H. Sullivan — has grown at a breakneck pace. New partners in Colorado, Michigan, North Carolina, Illinois, Pennsylvania and Connecticut — 10 in all — have joined the 10 OIC affiliates already offering industry-recognized training to low-income and justice-involved people. And we have a bunch more future partners in the pipeline.
Know any organizations that can help us reach our goal of training 100,000 new workers a year by 2030? Please put us in touch.
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OIC of America Awarded Opportunity Fund Grant From U.S. Bank Foundation
OIC of America officials have spent considerable time in our nation’s capital in recent weeks to build support for the LEON Act (Leveraging Educational Opportunity Networks), named for OIC founder Leon H. Sullivan. President and CEO Louis J. King II and chief of staff Steve Thomas have met with a host of legislators, including Maryland Senator Chris Van Hollen (above) and Arizona Senator Mark Kelly (below). u003cbru003eu003cbru003eThe propoOIC of America has been awarded a $500,000 multi-year U.S. Bank Foundation Opportunity Fund grant to help build the Sullivan Training Network, which by 2030 will annually deliver industry-recognized training to 100,000 low-income and justice-involved people across the country.
“Too many Americans have been forgotten, while employers need millions of skilled people,” said Louis J. King II, President and CEO of OIC of America. “This is an opportunity to help people transform their lives — to put them on pathways to new careers, pathways out of poverty, and pathways to the middle class.”
News of the grant was covered in detail by the Philadelphia Inquirer, which interviewed Mr. King about the transformative potential of the Sullivan Training Network: “Who’s going to rebuild the Palisades? Who’s going to rebuild Asheville? Who is going to take care of America’s crumbling infrastructure?” King said. “We possess the talent in these communities. If we just reach out to the people, have them believe in themselves, believe in each other, it will make America a better place. America works best when America works together.”
Read the press release
Read the Philadelphia inquirer article
OIC Affiliate Highlight: In the Face of a Hurricane, ABCCM Scales Up
Since 1969, Asheville Buncombe Community Christian Ministry (ABCCM) — an OIC affiliate headquartered in Arden, N.C., just south of Asheville — has evolved into one of North Carolina’s leading faith-based nonprofits addressing poverty, hunger, homelessness and access to healthcare.
When ABCCM purchased a building with 55,000 square feet of warehouse space in July, they knew they needed more space, but they didn’t yet have an explicit roadmap for how they’d use it.
Just two months later, their answer arrived with a wallop as Hurricane Helene slammed into North Carolina.
“We knew what to do with half the warehouse space, but we weren’t sure about the rest,” says Mia Phillips, ABCCM’s marketing and communications director. “But the Lord was.”
Monday morning after the storm hit, the tractor trailers of supplies began arriving. Generators. Heaters. Toiletries. Paper towels. Diapers. In Buncombe County, where roughly a third of homes were completely lost, the need was enormous and instantaneous.
“Immediately, we were able to get coordinated and start distributing those supplies,” says Phillips.
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OIC of America is Growing — A Lot! Welcome to the Team
OIC of America is excited to experience extraordinary growth across the organization — from the Sullivan Training Network and our STEM team to development, communications, finance and more.
Please welcome everyone new to the team since July 1 of last year.
We can’t wait to work with you!
