GLASGOW — Rebecca Hurley wants to get hired by a company and work her way up the ladder.

The senior at the Barren County Area Technology Center studying engineering and architecture told business and education leaders Wednesday at the BCATC that she enjoys designing houses on a computer and loves cars.

“Salary is a big deal, but what I want is mobility and a chance to advance in a company,” Hurley said.

The employers in the audience nodded their heads. Hurley will get a job after she graduates from high school and then college. But they knew Hurley and the three other exceptional students who joined her up front in the room weren’t why they attended the BCATC luncheon and program.

Officials from Barren, Hart, Metcalfe and Monroe counties want to find out how they will find applicants for about 700 jobs open right now in their region and came to ResCare Workforce Services Director Victor Ponder to get some insight. 

RWS replaced the Barren River Area Development District in workforce services and faces a tough task.

People seeking jobs might eschew college and want to immediately enter the local workforce, especially with the shutting down of Dana, a major Barren County employer. It is up to RWS to help prepare them.

Training, financial support and good soft skills are critical for those potential hires to succeed in the workplace. Ponder said one tool RWS brings to the task is the 42 employers in its national employer database. Another tool is a wealth of experience across the nation.

Barren County Judge-Executive Micheal Hale and Hart County Judge-Executive Terry Martin have high expectations for RWS.

“We need help. Everyone needs help,” Hale said. “We are going to hold their feet to the fire.”

Hale said the Kentucky Workforce Investment Board, of which he is a member, identified the local region as the one in the state that needs the most help in workforce services.

Thus, BRADD’s contract was discontinued, and RWS was hired, Hale said. The South Central Workforce Development Board has about $3 million, including some carryover funds from previous fiscal years, to pay for job training, education efforts and personal soft-skills development. That board is also developing a strategic plan.

Martin said the proof will be in the performance.

Asked Wednesday if his skepticism had lessened, Martin said it won’t “until all my jobs are filled.”

Meetings such as Wednesday’s, attended by about 50 people from the four counties, are one step, Ponder said.

“Now we need to take this (discussion) to the next level,” he said.

RWS is now the direct-service provider for the 10-county region and is ramping up staff hires and training to hit the ground running early next year, Ponder said. The region has more jobs than people to fill them right now, he said. A check of CareerBuilder, a job website, shows 6,800 jobs available in the region with 1,600 applicants.

Ponder said RWS currently helps people find jobs in 37 states and he introduced Angela Blackburn to the audience, whom Ponder has hired to oversee the Bowling Green and Glasgow Kentucky Career Center offices. Blackburn is a veteran of the Hart County Chamber of Commerce and most recently human resources manager at Marzetti.

“This is a great opportunity for all of us in this room,” said Blackburn, who starts with RWS on Dec. 12.

Hurley; Tristan Barrera, a senior seeking a job in the welding profession; Max Pena, another senior who is taking machine tool classes; and sophomore Braydon Peavler, who recently worked on a water drainage project in the county and aspires to be an engineer, told the audience that they are continuing to map out their future career decisions. BCATC offers 10 programs, including a culinary option that provided the pulled pork, mac and cheese and cooked apples on Wednesday’s lunch menu for guests.

“This is a great collaboration effort,” said Amy Irwin, college and career development coordinator for the Barren County Schools. 

The man who oversees the Barren County Schools District agreed.

“Any time we can strengthen our partnerships with business, it is a win-win for the community,”  Barren County Schools Superintendent Bo Matthews said.

— Follow business reporter Charles A. Mason on Twitter @BGDNbusiness or visit bgdailynews.com.