For Information Contact:

Rosemary Carole
Economic Development Liaison
798-5908

Oneida County Executive Ralph J. Eannace, Jr., announced today that the highly successful Oneida County College Student Corps has been awarded a $30,000 Challenge Grant by the Community Foundation of Oneida and Herkimer Counties.

"The Community Foundation has had the foresight to understand that this terrific program can help the Mohawk Valley tackle its top workforce issue – the retention of its young people," Eannace said. "Now, we need our employers to become full partners in this program so that we can offer even more internships this summer."

Community Foundation Executive Director Gordon M. Hayes, Jr., added, "This latest investment by the Foundation acknowledges the initial success of the College Student Corps program and is made with the hope that it will be the impetus for the members of the business community to demonstrate their support by becoming permanent program partners."

The $30,000 must be matched by employers. Eannace said Oneida County has begun an intensive campaign of employer contacts to raise the money, so that when students come home from college in May, they will have top-quality internships with the area’s leading edge companies.

"Our goal is to make this program the flagship program for retaining our many talented young people. The more interns we hire, the more young people we can expose to the great careers here in Oneida County," said Board of Legislators Chairman Gerald Fiorini.

Although the process of matching interns and employers has already begun, Eannace said that due to the anticipated addition of new employers thanks to the Challenge Grant, students interested in applying for the College Student Corps could still file pre-applications, which are available on line at www.oneidacounty.org or at the Working Solutions One-Stops in the State Office Building in Utica and at 252 W. Dominick St. in Rome.

Under terms of the challenge grant, the Community Foundation will provide a dollar-for-dollar match for private sector employer contributions – not government -- of up to $30,000, Hayes said. He noted that the Community Foundation supported the College Student Corps in its second year with a $60,000 grant, and has supported other economic development efforts such as "Call Mohawk Valley Home," and Leadership Mohawk Valley.

"The Foundation’s Challenge Grant is intended to spur the private sector to step up now and in the future," Hayes said. "We hope the College Student Corps program will be a victory for both local employers and the young people who elect to stay in the Mohawk Valley."

"This is a great bargain," Eannace said. "We are asking employers to pay half the salary of an intern – about $750 – and in return they get an enthusiastic intern who gives back far more than that and who might want to return for another summer or a future job opening. These young people are among the thousands who are our future. The College Student Corps is working to keep them here as our leaders of tomorrow."

The Oneida County College Student Corps was begun in 1998 by the Oneida County Board of Legislators. It connects top-flight students and area employer. Students learn about the region’s great job opportunities in their fields of study. Employers get energetic interns who are carefully matched to their needs. Last year, despite hiring a record high of 146 interns, more than 250 applicants were turned away.

"We are getting applications from students in all areas – technology, health care, business, law, human services," said Eannace. "Oneida County is home to many very talented young people. This program is our chance to show them the kinds of opportunity they can have here after graduation."

The program has a track record of success. Seventy-five percent of last year’s interns responding to surveys said they would like to work in the Mohawk Valley after graduation from college. Ninety-one percent of employers said they would like to hire their interns when they graduate.

"The College Student Corps works. Now, our challenge is to get the full support of the private sector to make sure we don’t turn away any student seeking an opportunity here in Oneida County," Eannace said. "If this program can make the transition from being supported by government to a partnership between government and employers, we think it can grow even more. The Community Foundation has been willing to help us in this transition year, affirming their position as a real catalyst for positive change in the Mohawk Valley."

The 200-hour internships, which pay $7 an hour, cost about $1,500 for salaries, FICA, etc. If an employer splits the cost, the employer would pay only about $3.75 an hour. Eannace said the Oneida County Office of Workforce Development screens applicants and matches them to an employer’s needs and also takes care of all the paperwork involved in the program.

"We want to make it simple for employers," said Eannace. "No red tape. No paperwork. Just challenging opportunities for our great young people."