COVINGTON, Ga – Approximately 100 people were on hand at the Newton County Historic Courthouse July 10 to attend an informational session on the Logistics Education And Pathways (LEAP) Newton pilot program. Six Newton County citizens who have already completed coursework in the program received certificates from Georgia Tech acknowledging their accomplishments.
The LEAP program in Newton County is a partnership involving Georgia Tech, the City of Covington, Newton County, Newton County Economic Development, The Newton County School System and the Covington Newton County Chamber of Commerce.
The program consists of four online courses in which students learn about Supply Chain Management Principles, Warehousing Opportunities, Transportation Operations and Customer Service Operations. Students who complete the self-paced courses are prepared to compete for jobs in the growing logistics field. Logistics World defines “logistics” as a “business planning framework for the management of material, service, information and capital flows,” or simply put, “Having the right thing at the right place at the right time.”
Carole Bennett, GT LEAP Outreach Coordinator, said, “ What you learn in this program is not just what’s going on in a logistics job and how to do things, you will also be able to start questioning ‘why’ you are doing things and the impact you will have in your role in the supply chain.”
According to a press release from the Covington Newton County Chamber of Commerce, The Georgia Tech LEAP pilot program is designed to help high school students, entry level job seekers, people changing careers and veterans compete for jobs and successful careers in supply chain management and logistics.To qualify, applicants must be residents from Newton, Rockdale, Walton, Jasper, DeKalb or Morgan County. The first 100 applicants had their tuition waived. Covington Mayor Ronnie Johnston told the recipients of the scholarships that their success will be tracked.
“I expect 100 percent success, which means all of you have to graduate. What we want to do is use you one hundred to help people like me and the chairman (Board of Commissioners Chairman Marcello Banes) change the entire community,” he said, “I hope that doesn’t bother you, but if it does, you will get used to it.”
In addition to the four online courses, the program offers resume and career advising. Georgia Tech also hosts “Supply Chain” days on its campus where students who have completed course work have the opportunity to meet with companies interested in hiring them.
Students who complete the courses receive a Georgia Tech Professional Education course completion certificate and continuing education units. They will also have a permanent Georgia Tech Professional Education transcript.
“This is a great educational tool for our county,” Banes said, “that Georgia Tech Professional Education is partnering with the county and our chamber of commerce will be a great help to our citizens as they work to get better qualified for some of the many career opportunities available in Newton County.”
For more information, Google “Georgia Tech LEAP” or visit www.scl.gatech.edu/leap.
