Gwinnett Daily Post

LAWRENCEVILLE - More than 100 Maxwell High School of Technology students have been certified as "work ready" after working with Gwinnett Technical College to prepare for the work force while earning their high school diplomas.

To earn a Work Ready certificate, high school students can take free assessment tests at Gwinnett Tech in applied math, reading for information, locating information and work ethics. Maxwell High students have earned 115 certificates, a news release states.

"Today's employers often have trouble finding and hiring people with the right skills for the jobs at hand. Businesses need new hires that can perform efficiently," Ann Sechrist, director of economic development at Gwinnett Tech, said in the news release. "A job applicant with a Work Ready certificate tells an employer that he or she is ready to go to work with the skills needed for the job."

Gwinnett Tech is partnering with the Governor's Office of Workforce Development on the Georgia Work Ready program to strengthen Gwinnett's work force and promote statewide economic growth, the news release says.

Sechrist said the ultimate goal is for Gwinnett County to be certified as a Work Ready county, a milestone measured by the level of employer and employee participation.

"As our Work Ready community continues to grow, these young men and women from Maxwell will be some of the very first in Gwinnett that are Work Ready," she said.

For more information about Gwinnett Tech's Work Ready program, call the college's Assessment Center at 678-226-6303.