Washington County Students Learn More about Education, Job Opportunities with Help from AT&T
Program highlighted during special event with Gov. Hogan
Hagerstown, MD (October 13, 2016) – High school students in Washington County will have access to more information about higher education and career training opportunities in Maryland through the OnTrack Washington County program. AT&T contributed $25,000 to support the initiative.
OnTrack Washington County was highlighted during a special event today at Bester Elementary School with Gov. Larry Hogan, who discussed his commitment to education and economic development in Washington County and across Maryland. The event was part the governor's three-day trip to Western Maryland, which included a Regional Cabinet Meeting in Hagerstown earlier this morning.
“I am proud to join today with education officials, students, parents, and business leaders to support OnTrack, which will help provide Washington County students with the resources they need to be successful,” said Governor Hogan. “I would like to thank AT&T for recognizing the importance of this program to the Washington County community, and providing this much-needed support for our students.”
OnTrack is a coalition of independent community partners focused on improving the educational attainment levels of Washington County residents, in order to strengthen our local economy and improve our community’s quality of life. A variety of educational, business, philanthropic, and civic leaders began meeting in January 2015. Together they plan to create a “cradle to career” support system, empowering citizens to acquire the educational or vocational training necessary for lifelong success and craft a strategy to educate the public on the need for an educational movement in our community.
With significant input from community stakeholders and based on local and national research and data, the role of OnTrack is to:
• Facilitate a community vision and agenda for college and career readiness;
• Define and articulate the educational and vocational challenges facing the community;
• Establish shared measurements and local benchmarks for college and career readiness and advance evidence-based decision making among stakeholder organizations; and
• Encourage and facilitate collaborations and strategic action designed to address our educational and vocational challenges.
“The Hagerstown-Washington County Chamber of Commerce is committed to economic vitality and growth in Washington County. Collaborating with over 30 community partners, and with support from companies like AT&T, OnTrack will help ensure that we prepare our students for the demands of a 21st century workforce,” said Paul Frey, President and CEO of the chamber.
Chris Motz, Chair of the Greater Hagerstown Committee, said: "The need for a more educated workforce is what drove the creation of OnTrack. This initiative seeks to foster collaboration across a network of supporting organizations to drive public engagement and provide a focused, coordinated effort to improve the educational attainment level in Washington County. With the help of the contribution from AT&T, we will be able to take important steps to see the goal realized."
“United Way recognizes the benefits of collaborating and the need to foster all resources, whether public, private, individually or through companies like AT&T, in order to tackle Washington County’s educational and vocational challenges,” said Melissa Reabold, CEO of United Way of Washington County. “United Way’s education funding goal of Community Impact, and the relationships we have with local employers, is why we chose to align with the Chamber of Commerce and the new OnTrack initiative. Working together we will be able to accomplish so much more.”
Denis Dunn, president, AT&T Maryland, said the contribution will help prepare students for jobs and opportunities in the future.
“At AT&T, we want to do what we can to inspire students to stay in school and prepare for jobs and opportunities available in the digital economy,” Dunn said. “When leaders like Governor Hogan team up with the private sector and local community leaders, Maryland’s young people will have the tools they need to excel in college and careers and to become the state’s future business and technology leaders.”
Dunn said the program is aligned with AT&T Aspire, AT&T’s signature philanthropic initiative that drives innovation in education by bringing diverse resources to bear on the issue including funding, technology, employee volunteerism, and mentoring.
Follow OnTrackWC on Twitter @OnTrackWC to stay up to date on its work. Follow @connecttogood on Twitter to learn more about AT&T’s support for education and other programs nationwide.