Marano Fellows Class of 2014
Name: Stephanie Bredman
Title:

Iowa New Jobs Training Manager

Organization:

Kirkwood Community College

Location: Cedar Rapids IA
Industry Sector: Healthcare and Food Science/Biotechnology

Organizational Background & Mission: Kirkwood Community College was founded in 1966 and offers over 120 different credit programs, serves more than 60,000 non credits students each year, and 4,500 dual credit students. The college invested in Regional Centers starting with one center in one of our rural counties five years ago and now will be adding the fifth regional center in 2015. These centers provide classes for both high school and college age students as well as a variety of continuing education courses. The college service area is 7 counties in eastern Iowa. The continuing education division encompasses our continuing education classes, fire and safety, contract training, small business development center, truck driving, health, Skills to Employment and IowaWorks programs.

Kirkwood Community College Mission: Consistent with the philosophy held by the College in accordance with the charge given it by the State of Iowa as an institution of higher education and in concert with other agencies: Kirkwood Community College identifies community needs; provides accessible, quality education and training; and promotes opportunities for lifelong learning. To accomplish this mission we are committed to creating an environment in which we constantly strive for improvement.

Interest in Sector Work: I understand what higher education can do for those looking for a better career. The past two years I have seen how sector groups can change perceptions of an industry, it opens doors for those unable, and it strengthens the relationship between the college and the community.

My goal is to understand how to create a sector group that is high performing. I hope to learn the process to take to gain commitment from the organizations in the industry sector as well as from those that can support it. I look forward to understanding and working through the challenges that occur while creating an industry sector by creating a network of other organizations that utilize a sector board approach.