VITEC offers workforce training packed with useful information for small businesses and employees.Did you ever wonder how Polynesian ancestors navigated using the night sky? Are you interested in starting your own business but just don’t know how? Do you want to gain competency as an electrician? Continuing adult education can open up many options with new skills and certification programs.
Recently, Maui Community College’s Office of Continuing Education (OCET) and Training received a grant from Alexander and Baldwin for VITEC, a program that teaches classes in workforce development training and personal enrichment. The grant will subsidize the costs of business development classes, making many of VITEC’s popular $101 classes available for only $1.
“The A&B Foundation recognizes the importance of helping Maui’s small businesses to provide affordable training to their employees and improve their workforce,” said Linda Howe, vice president of A&B Foundation.
The college announced the receipt of a $15,000 grant from the Alexander and Baldwin Foundation to support the popular A&B Small Business Training Series for a third consecutive year.
“Since 1990, the A&B Foundation has made contributions totaling $326,000 to Maui Community College for the benefit of its students, faculty and staff, providing Maui County residents with access to quality learning experiences that are responsive to community needs. It is a pleasure to be among Maui Community College’s most consistent supporters,” said Howe.
The announcement on Friday, Dec. 14, was about “Training Bonuses,” which can assist with costs of business development classes. Bonuses can be applied to classes that begin in January. Because of A&B Foundation’s support, the series has provided training in areas such as customer service, sales, and workplace communication skills for many small businesses on Maui.
“VITEC is a resource that companies can use to train and educate their staff. A lot of it is focused on small business. The A&B bonus is for small businesses to develop their skills to increase their revenues,” said Evelina Bondar, marketing and program coordinator for VITEC. VITEC offers a broad array of cultural enrichment classes from watercolor to Japanese language to comedy improvisation. VITEC also provides many skill-oriented, interactive, applied training classes that are “global quality—island-style” at the Kahului campus and the Lahaina educational center.
A&B Foundation is funded by the business activities of Alexander & Baldwin Inc. and its subsidiaries, which include Hawaiian Commercial and Sugar (HC&S)/Maui Brand Sugar, East Maui Irrigation Company, Kahului Trucking & Storage Company, A&B Properties Inc., A&B Wailea LLC and Matson Navigation Company.
According to OCET Director Lori Govaars, “Our participants have told us they found these workshops to be packed with useful information and very valuable to their employees. They also appreciated the convenient workshop locations, which meant their employees didn’t have to spend much time away from the workplace to attend.”
Business and computer training classes may qualify for bonuses and cost only $1. Reduced rates make it easier for businesses to increase their bottom line and the effectiveness of staff through business and computer training offered by VITEC.
Dollar classes include, but are not limited to, Hiring & Firing Practices, Starting an Email Newsletter, Supervisory Essentials, High Impact Business Writing, Performance Coaching, Leading with Emotional Intelligence, Negotiating for Win/Win and Best Practices in Customer Service.
Small business owners and employees, sole proprietors, and the unemployed can take advantage of this educational opportunity as well as larger companies, non-profits, educational and governmental institutions. An organization may apply for up to four “A&B Training Bonuses” for four separate employees in 2008 as long as funds last. This opportunity is available on a first-come, first-served basis.
In classes where bonuses apply, the student can learn how to find qualified employees to help grow small businesses; the art of writing newsletters and how they can be used as a low-cost marketing tool that will educate, entertain, and inspire customers to use services more often; ways to motivate staff members to achieve their goals and passions to get the best from the team; ways to organize thoughts for positive results from memos, letters, reports, and proposals; and finally, how to give feedback that motivates staff and doesn’t defeat them by leading with emotional intelligence.
Regarding class content, Instructor Leili McKinley said, “My classes span in two directions because I do small business consulting and I develop classes specifically for people in business and small businesses within a tight labor market. I put together a class on hiring and human resources because young businesses stumble over this. A piece that’s missing is new technologies that help with marketing, [such as] email newsletters. [They are] perhaps something new and scary, but have been around for five years. We’re trying to offer a new technology that can be integrated into Internet technology. It is a very cost effective technology that is cheap and easy to use.”
Upcoming classes begin this fall in Kahului and at the new MCC Lahaina Education Center. Course topics and schedules are currently being developed. For more information on how to qualify, see VITEC’s website at www.ocet.org, check VITEC’s Spring ’08 Class Catalog or call 984-3231.