Coming Together to Create
Strong Workers
In Lawrence County, we take pride in our workforce and future work force. A large part of what we do in the Lawrence County Community Development Association is educating our existing workforce and working closely with our Lawrence County School District to prepare our students to enter the workforce in the future. One key way we are ensuring we have an educated workforce is with the ACT WorkKeys as a Certified ACT WorkReady Community.
Our Workforce
Educating Our Workers
In Lawrence County, we take pride in our workforce and future work force. A large part of what we do in the Lawrence County Community Development Association is educating our existing workforce on opportunities through our office, and our local community college programs, local university programs. We also pride ourselves on trying to find innovative ways to help the emerging workforce as new challenges rise post- covid.
Some of the ways we combat the workforce problems:
Work Closely with Schools
We work closely with the Lawrence County School District Superintendent, local school principals, Career and Technical Center Directors, and teachers to ensure we are incorporating workforce development and soft skills training into curriculum for students. We are dedicated to helping our students be prepared to enter the workforce or college setting once leaving the school system.
College Readiness Courses
We also help oversee the State of Mississippi career and college readiness course at Lawrence County High School. This course is a required credit all students must take in order to graduate where teachers' curriculum follows soft skill and workforce guidelines to ensure students understand the life skills needed for higher education or workforce.
Supporting Work Based Learning
We have supported the new work based learning course offered at the Lawrence County Career and Technical Center by assisting in the start-up of that course, partnership with local industry and business, and presenting to students about opportunities. We also have a seat on the Career and Technical Center Executive Board to help assist in the placement of courses based on the needs of the community.
Help Gather & Train Employees
We work with existing industry and new industry to connect them with Copiah Lincoln Community College, Lawrence County School District, and state representatives at Accelerate MS to assist in helping those industries gather the employees they need or train employees in new skills and trades they require.
Certified ACT WorkReady Communit
One key way we are ensuring we have an educated workforce is with the ACT WorkKeys as a Certified ACT WorkReady Community which is a career readiness assessment to test people's problem-solving skills and career readiness at any stage whether they are students, existing workers, or people emerging into the workforce.
ACT Work Ready Community
What is an Certified ACT Work Ready Community?
ACT Work Ready Communities (WRC) empowers states, regions and counties with data, processes and tools that drive economic growth. Participants are leveraging the ACT WorkKeys National Career Readiness Certificate (NCRC) to measure and close the skills gap — and building common frameworks that link, align and match their workforce development efforts.
Accelerate MS
Let Mississippi supercharge your job search.
What People Say About ACT
“ACT Work Ready Communities is a great win for the local community. By using Work Keys, we are able to recruit locally for better retention and lower costs and keep our roots in the community in good paying jobs. This provides for the continued economic growth of our community. It’s truly a win for everyone.”
Trudy Haszlauer
LABOR RELATIONS MANAGER, NV ENERGY
ACT Work Ready Community
Residents Performance
Lawrence County, as of May 2018, has been certified as a ACT Work Ready Community and many of the Lawrence County residents have excelled in the program.
As of September, Southwest Mississippi became the first ACT WorkKeys Certified region in the state of Mississippi.
ACT WorkKeys National Career Readiness Certificate [NCRC]
| WORKFORCE | TOTAL | BRONZE | SILVER | GOLD | PLATINUM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Emerging | High School | 291 | 108 | 113 | 51 | 19 |
| College | 46 | 15 | 16 | 14 | + | |
| Current | Private | 97 | 26 | 41 | 17 | 13 |
| Public | 85 | 32 | 43 | 6 | + | |
| Transitioning | Adult Education | 22 | 11 | 10 | + | 0 |
| Unemployed | 199 | 92 | 82 | 22 | + | |
| Recent Veteran | + | 0 | 0 | + | 0 | |
| Not Identified | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| TOTALS | 741 | 284 | 305 | 112 | 40 | |
The table above is a detailed breakdown of the same ACT WorkKeys NCRC data presented in the upper right box on this page and represents ACT WorkKeys NCRCs earned or improved throughout the community. All ACT WorkKeys NCRC data is updated monthly.
+ Value less than 4
ACT Employers
Employers in Lawrence County that recognize or recommend the ACT Work Keys NCRC
Get to Know Our People
Demographics & Labor Force
Lawrence County holds a rich history which has led to a diverse county of people and employees.
According to research
- Lawrence County has a Labor Force NSA of 404
- 590 NSA within a 60 mile radius
- 5.80% unemployment rate
- That means 23,466 people in a 60 mile radius of Lawrence County are actively looking for a job!
Population
-
1,339-
11,314
-
11,314-
19,079
-
19,080-
28,420
-
28,421-
46,768
-
46,769-
239,497
Total Population
12,643
Demographics
Ages & Ethnicity
Population
Ages
>18
18-34
35-64
65+
Ethnicity
- American Indian/ Alaskan .14%
- Asian .40%
- Native Pacific Islander .02%
- Other Race 1.57%
Demographics
Income, Education & Commute
Household Income
Education Attainment
People over 25 years old
No High school Diploma- 17.93%
High school or GED- 33.30%
Some College- 18.09%
Associates Degree- 13.13%
Bachelors- 8.69
Masters- 7.09
Professional or Doctorate Degree- 1.78%
No High School Diploma
High School
or GED
Some College
Associates
Degree
Bachelors
Degree
Masters
Degree
Professional or Doctorate
Commute Times
in Minuets
>15
24.80%
15-30
20.70%
30-45
24.84%
45-59
13.57%
60+
16.09%
Demographics
Fast Facts
Want to Know More?
Please contact us at the Lawrence County Community Development Association for more information regarding our demographic information and labor study data.
Learning Never Stops
Workforce Training
Training
Fact List
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