One-Stop Partners
The Workforce Investment Act of 1998 was designed to increase employment, job retention, earnings, and occupational skills of job seekers and employers through a one-stop delivery system. The mandate of the WIA is that One-Stop Centers offer customers universal access to core, intensive and training services through linkages with partner agencies and their services.
The Lowcountry Workforce Investment System is made up of program partners that include the following agencies:
Adult Education and Literacy
The mission of Adult Education and Literacy is to provide educational opportunities that will enable adult students to reach their educational potential and become even more productive citizens. An adult who is 18 years of age or older and who is no longer attending high school can enroll in any of the programs. The courses include: literacy, adult basic education, high school diploma, GED, self-improvement or upgrading, and basic computer instruction.
Community Service Block Grants
The Community Service Block Grant program provides States and Federal and State-recognized Indian Tribes with funds to provide a range of services to address the needs of low income individuals to ameliorate the causes and conditions of poverty. The CSBG is administered by the Division of State Assistance in the Office of Community Services (OCS).
Lowcountry Community Action Agency
For more information contact LCAA at 843-549-5576, P. O. Box 1726, 248 Hampton Street, Walterboro, South Carolina
Beaufort-Jasper Economic Opportunity Commission
For more information contact BJEOC at 843-470-4512, P.O. Box 2296, 1905 Duke Street, Beaufort, South Carolina.
Department of Drug, Alcohol and Other Abuse Services
DAODAS partners with public, private and social sector organizations to provide quality prevention, intervention and treatment services for the citizens of South Carolina.
New Life Center
For more information contact the New Life Center at New Life Center at 843-726-5996, 113 E. Wilson Street, P. O. Box 1362, Ridgeland, South Carolina.
Department of Social Services
The mission of the South Carolina Department of Social Services is to ensure the health and safety of children and adults who are unable to protect themselves, to help parents and caregivers provide stable homes, and to help those in need of financial assistance reach their highest level of social and economic self-sufficiency.
South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce
Looking for work? Looking for information on WIA? Looking for good employees? You can find all of this and more on the South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce website.
Hilton Head Island / Bluffton Chamber of Commerce
The mission of the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton Chamber of Commerce is "to represent, serve and promote the common interests of our membership and the business community; to contribute to the preservation and prudent economic growth of the Hilton Head Island and Bluffton areas as a healthy place to live and do business."
Beaufort Housing Authority
The Beaufort Housing Authority's mission is to provide affordable housing in a safe community environment and assist those they serve as they strive to achieve self sufficiency. In addition to rental housing the Beaufort Housing Authority provides programs on home ownership, family self sufficiency, and financial education. For more information contact the BHA at 843-525-7059, P.O. Box 1104, 1009 Prince Street, Beaufort, South Carolina.
Lowcountry Council of Governments
Senior Community Services Employment Program
Our goals are the enhancement of employment opportunities for older Americans and the promotion of older workers as a solution for businesses seeking a trained, qualified, and reliable workforce. Our strategy is to utilize a service approach that can respond quickly and effectively to the changing needs of business. We believe that older workers provide a valuable resource to the needs of a 21st century workforce. Through the SCSEP program, we are committed to providing high quality job training and employment assistance to our participants. At the same time, we are also committed to assisting employers that are facing the challenges of today?s workplace by developing a viable workforce that is trained and ready to work.
Workforce Investment Act Program
The Lowcountry Council of Governments serves as a regional agency to help implement the goals of the Workforce Investment Act in Beaufort, Colleton, Hampton, and Jasper counties. Working under the guidance of the Lowcountry Workforce Investment Board, the program seeks to meet the needs of employers by developing a sustainable and trained workforce and to promote a system that encourages job seekers to use the resources of the One Stop Centers to enhance their skills to meet the needs of local employers. Click here to contact Lowcountry Workforce staff.
South Carolina Commission for the Blind
The mission of the South Carolina Commission for the Blind is to provide quality, individualized vocational rehabilitation services, independent living services, and prevention of blindness services to blind and visually impaired consumers leading to competitive employment and social and economic independence.
Technical College of the Lowcountry
One of sixteen colleges comprising the South Carolina Technical College System, the Technical College of the Lowcountry traces its origin to the Mather School founded in 1868. The college is a comprehensive, public, two-year college dedicated to serving the diverse educational needs of the rural counties of Beaufort, Colleton, Hampton, and Jasper. The College annually serves approximately 8,500 credit and continuing education students, a mix of traditional, non-traditional, full-time, and part-time.
Telamon Corporation
Since 1965, Telamon Corporation has provided supportive assistance to untold numbers of recipients. Farmworkers and their families, children born into poverty, low-income and elderly residents of rural America, youth who struggle with societal challenges, the dislocated and disenfranchised comprise this universe of people in need.
University of South Carolina
Beaufort Campus
USCB offers degree programs at various sites throughout the rapidly growing Lowcountry of South Carolina. USCB offers baccalaureate degrees that respond to regional needs, draw upon regional strengths, and prepare graduates to participate successfully in communities here and around the globe. The campus also supports the USC Extended Graduate Campus, which provides local access to graduate courses and programs. The University enriches the quality of life for area residents of all ages through presentations of the performing and fine arts, community service, symposia, research initiatives, and partnerships with area schools, businesses and organizations.
Salkehatchie Campus
USC Salkehatchie Campus values its role as a part of the University of South Carolina, bringing the programs, resources, and opportunities of the University to the local service area of Allendale, Bamberg, Barnwell, Colleton, and Hampton Counties, along with the USC Salkehatchie mission of providing undergraduate and graduate coursework. Its academic, community development, cultural, public service, and recreational programs and services reflect USC Salkehatchie's purpose to enhance and enrich the communities of its service area and to improve the quality of life of its citizens.
Vocational Rehabilitation
South Carolina Vocational Rehabilitation Department serves those that want to work but are unable to due to a physical or mental disability. Any South Carolinian who has a physical or mental disability that substantially interferes with their ability to work may be eligible for Vocational Rehabilitation services.