Women Are Building a Promising Future Through “Thrive Together Walker County”
Thrive Together is a 2Gen hub connecting single mothers and their children in the Walker County area to the resources, services, and support needed to become self-sufficient families. The Thrive Together staff provides assistance and training for women and their children at 200 percent or below the federal poverty level through education, career development, and life skills.
Upon entering the program, women are assigned a success coach to support them as they establish goals and work towards them. Women primarily work with their success coach one-on-one while also having the opportunity to be a part of a Women’s Cohort that meets once a month.
“There are some women that come to Thrive and do not have a support system, so this is a place where women can come together with one goal in mind: to make a better life for themselves and their children,” says Thrive Together Walker County Success Coach Courtney Reeves.
This program is a collaborative effort between Bevill State Community College, the Walker County Board of Education and the Jasper Area Family Services Center. This 2Gen work is funded by The Women’s Fund of Greater Birmingham and the Walker Area Community Foundation.
We have been so fortunate — the Women’s Fund has been wonderful, awarding Bevill State grants for scholarships for single mothers,” says Bevill State Career Technical Director Maurice Ingle. “Women are able to apply for this scholarship that covers three semesters in a high demand/high wage program— this has been a big incentive as well.”
There is an abundance of opportunity for the women who enter career tech programs at Bevill State. The staff within these programs have partnerships with various companies which help these women identify job interview opportunities once they have completed their program. Bevill State also offers a Workkeys® Program. Workkeys® is a job skills assessment system that measures real-world skills and connects work skills, training, and testing for education and employers. Workkeys® holds job interviews, so women can go through the job placement process while in the program.
“The best part of my job is knowing what the future holds and knowing that women's lives are going to change from this point forward: building a career and building a life for them and their family. Having that sustainability,” says Maurice Ingle.
If you would like to make a donation or volunteer, please contact Jasper Area Family Services Center at (205) 302-0801.
Jasper Area Family Services Center is a non-profit organization offering diverse programs and resources to individuals and families in Walker County. Among these programs are nationally recognized organizations such as the Fatherhood Initiative and HIPPY USA. For more information, please visit www.jafsc.org.