At Goodwill, we know that supporting people holistically means meeting a wide range of needs. That’s why we’re proud to partner with trusted community organizations to bring free tax preparation support to both our Charlotte and Gastonia Career & Employment Centers this tax season.

Goodwill Industries of the Southern Piedmont is receiving a substantial financial contribution toward its mission. The nonprofit was awarded a grant from The Lennar Foundation and the Charles Koch Foundation.

“We are thrilled to receive this investment in our mission,” said LaRita Barber, Chief Advancement Officer for Goodwill Industries of the Southern Piedmont. “Financial contributions like this one make it possible for us to offer job training programs at no cost to community members. We know that sustainable employment is a key driver of economic mobility and prosperity, and programs like our Construction & Trade Skills training program help people build the skills they need to succeed.”

Funding will support Goodwill’s Construction Basics program, which provides participants with foundational skills for employment in the construction industry. The 10-week program, delivered at the Goodwill Construction Skills Training Center, includes instruction in job site safety, basic math and tool identification, and it serves as the prerequisite to advanced programs also offered at the center.

“Employment opportunities in the construction industry are growing rapidly, but many job seekers lack the skills employers need,” said Marvin Kelley, Director for Construction & Trade Skills training at Goodwill. “Our program bridges that gap by providing hands-on training and industry-recognized certifications to set participants up for long-term success.” 

Upon completion, participants earn National Center for Construction Education and Research (NCCER) Core and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) 30-hour certifications. They also receive support from Goodwill staff, who provide wraparound services such as resume prep, mock interviews and assistance in building employability skills. 

The Goodwill Construction Skills Training Center opened in 2019 to create a pathway for upward mobility through the trades, while also addressing the labor shortage of local construction companies. Since then, the Goodwill program has graduated 850 adult learners, increased its list of employer partners and created a pipeline of talent to local construction companies.

At Goodwill, we believe that investing in people is the key to organizational success. That’s why we developed Essential Edge – a fully customizable professional development program designed to meet the real-world needs of today’s workforce. Whether your goals include reducing turnover, boosting employee engagement, or strengthening communication, Essential Edge offers flexible training options tailored to your team’s objectives and budget.

From Essential Skills training and leadership mini-conferences to the DiSC communication tool, interview workshops, computer essentials, and customer service training, organizations can mix and match modules to build a program that works for them.

One of our standout partnerships is with Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS). Together, we launched a Supervisor Workshop – a targeted program combining Essential Skills, Everything DiSC, and Coaching to support CATS’ leadership development goals.

“We were thrilled to bring together 23 supervisors and managers from across all divisions of CATS to focus on building key leadership and professional skills through three impactful micro-learning sessions,” said C. Nicki Galloway, Director of Organization & Workforce Development at CATS.

“As part of the experience, our supervisors completed their personal DiSC assessment and took a deep dive into understanding themselves and how to better connect, communicate, and collaborate with others.”

CATS’ enthusiasm for the program has been inspiring. As Galloway shared:

“We’re proud to invest in the growth of our leaders and continue strengthening the people who keep CATS moving people forward every day – and we are happy to promote and share our excitement and opportunities we’ve had because of our partnership!”

We’re proud to collaborate with organizations like CATS that are committed to empowering their teams. Let us help your business unlock its potential through Essential Edge.

Ready to elevate your workforce? Learn more about Essential Edge and how we can tailor a program for your team.

CELEBRATING OUR PARTNERS

At Goodwill, we believe that lasting change begins with a holistic approach. Stability in a career is deeply connected to stability in other areas of life – finances, health, housing and more. That’s why the Goodwill Opportunity Campus is home to a network of carefully selected partners who help address the full spectrum of needs our participants may face. But these partners aren’t just tenants – they’re collaborators. We work side by side, aligning our missions and overlapping our services to create a truly integrated support system. Through regular meetings and shared initiatives, we continuously explore ways to better serve our community together. This intentional, mission-driven model ensures that every individual who walks through our doors has access to the resources they need to prosper and thrive.

Charlotte Community Health Clinic

Charlotte Community Health Clinic provides accessible, affordable healthcare to adults and children, including primary care, behavioral health, and wellness education. With support from community partners and volunteers, the clinic bridges the gap for those without other means of medical or dental care, improving overall health outcomes in our community.

The Center for Community Transitions

The Center for Community Transitions helps individuals with criminal records rebuild their lives through employment services, behavioral health support, and family reunification programs. Their three initiatives—LifeWorks!, the Center for Women, and Behavioral Health—offer pathways to stability and reduce barriers to successful reentry.

Common Wealth Charlotte

Common Wealth Charlotte empowers economically vulnerable individuals through trauma-informed financial education, one-on-one counseling, and access to safe financial products. Their model includes free banking services and 0% interest loans, helping clients build financial capability and achieve lasting economic mobility.

Skyla Credit Union

Skyla Credit Union’s Financial Wellness Center at the Goodwill Opportunity Campus offers personalized financial counseling focused on budgeting, saving, and credit management. While not a full-service branch, it provides essential toolsGU —including an on-site ATM—to help members navigate financial challenges and work toward stability.

IT TAKES A VILLAGE

It truly takes a village to support individuals on their journey to stability and success. At the Goodwill Opportunity Campus, our partners work together to create a community of care that meets people where they are and helps them move forward.

Stay tuned to our social media channels throughout October as we spotlight these partnerships and the impact they’re making: Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, and TikTok.

If you’re interested in exploring a partnership with us, email us at partnerships@goodwillsp.org.

The Charlotte region is home to more than 100,000 financial services jobs, and it is the second-largest banking center in the nation. With no other workforce development programs dedicated to the finance industry in the greater Charlotte region, Goodwill Industries of the Southern Piedmont, in partnership with The Council for Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL) and CareerWork$, expanded its training division to offer the BankWork$® program in Fall 2023.

Since its launch, the nonprofit has helped 42 participants from four cohorts achieve employment, 30 of those jobs in the banking industry. Financial institutions such as Bank OZK are helping the nonprofit work toward its bold vision of providing meaningful employment to 15,000 individuals by 2029, and together the organizations are creating a new talent pipeline to address the critical issue of economic mobility in the Charlotte region.

“In today’s employment landscape, staffing continues to pose challenges for employers. Our partnership with Goodwill has been very beneficial to Bank OZK as Goodwill trains participants on essential skills like relationship building, problem solving, identifying customer needs, developing the ability to engage customers effectively, as well as promoting and selling bank products and services,” said Cathy Bonner, Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion & Outreach Programs at Bank OZK.

BankWork$ is an eight-week intensive workforce services program delivered by Goodwill that gives people the skills, access and coaching needed to succeed and grow in banking careers—from understanding the financial services workplace to bank regulations, bank products, cash handling, and processing customer transactions. Graduates are prepared for roles such as: Associate Banker, Branch Banker, Client Services Representative, Lead Teller, Member Service Consultant, Personal Banker, Relationship Banker, Teller, and Call Center Representative.

“BankWork$ and our great relationship with Goodwill Industries of the Southern Piedmont has played an instrumental role in helping us identify diverse, qualified talent in our North Carolina Retail Division led by Division President Shirley Edmond. BankWork$ prepares students well, making them immediately ready for a career in banking,” Bonner explained.

To date, four BankWork$ graduates have been hired by Bank OZK and work at their Belmont, Bessemer City, Cornelius and Landis banking centers. The bank anticipates hiring more graduates and is already eyeing participants from the fifth cohort, which ended in early November.

While the priority is to help community members access meaningful jobs, the partnership goes far beyond employment. Bank OZK has become an intricate part of the curriculum in the classroom and lends their industry insight to participants as needed.

“Bank OZK provides our expertise by facilitating classroom instruction and participating in mock interviews for each cohort class,” Bonner said. “Each completed cohort produces participants that are ready and prepared for careers in banking. Bank OZK prides itself on delivering exceptional customer service, and the talent we have sourced through Goodwill has certainly strengthened our team.”

Kenya Cunningham works as a Customer Banking Relationship Specialist for Bank OZK, a job she was able to land less than two months after graduating from the inaugural BankWork$ program.

“Goodwill is the place where you can turn your life around in a few weeks. You can go from, like myself, below poverty level to now middle-class income,” Cunningham stated during her graduation speech in January 2024 after starting with Bank OZK.

Tuition-free training programs like BankWork$ are available to the community, thanks to shopping and donating at Goodwill’s 36 retail locations and more than 40 donation sites, in addition to critical philanthropic contributions from corporations and community members. Success isn’t achieved alone, which is why Goodwill encourages partnership and collaboration to help community members advance their careers, and improve their lives.  

“We envision a community where equitable access to career opportunities is available for all,” said Chris Jackson, President and CEO of Goodwill Industries of the Southern Piedmont. “We recognize that skilled training is an essential part of helping to build our growing city, and we cannot achieve this work alone. Bank OZK’s partnership is critical in supporting our mission and providing economic stability to individuals in the Charlotte region.”

Bonner echoes that sentiment and encourages other financial institutions to learn about the BankWork$ program and find a way to get involved.

“Banks can support Goodwill’s mission by participating in Goodwill programs, offering job training and placement services for Goodwill participants through partnerships, promoting Goodwill’s programs to their customers, and hiring Goodwill graduates. This ultimately contributes to a more inclusive and thriving local economy by helping individuals overcome barriers to employment and achieve financial stability,” she said.

If you would like to support the BankWork$ program, or other career services and programs offered by Goodwill Industries of the Southern Piedmont, you can email Clarence Scott, director of GoodWork Staffing & Employer Engagement at Clarence.Scott@goodwillsp.org.

Goodwill Industries of the Southern Piedmont welcomes the National Institute of Minority Economic Development to its Goodwill Opportunity Campus. 

The North Carolina Institute of Minority Economic Development was founded in 1986 to expand and diversify the state’s economic base by providing direct support to minority and women-owned businesses. Now known as the National Institute of Minority Economic Development and spanning a five-state footprint in the Southeast, the institute continues to address racial and gender economic disparities by improving the ecosystem for diverse small businesses and increasing access to capital for businesses and communities.  

Their mission is to strengthen the asset base of diverse populations through policy, education and economic opportunities. They accomplish their mission through major programs including four Women’s Business Centers. With the outstanding leadership of programs like the Women’s Business Center of Charlotte, the institute has helped more than 10,000 minority businesses obtain over $1 billion in financial contracts and awards and secure more than $140 million in bonding.  

If you or your organization are looking for a space, contact Carola Cardenas, Director of Workforce Partnerships and Outreach at Goodwill Industries of the Southern Piedmont, at Carola.Cardenas@goodwillsp.org.  

Nonprofit joins partnership in its commitment to recruiting and advancing workforce development initiatives in the Charlotte region

During a press conference at the Urban League of Central Carolinas on September 24, Goodwill, along with other nonprofits, community organizations, elected officials, unions and workforce providers, announced their commitment to adopt and implement the Departments of Commerce and Labor’s Good Jobs Principles, cement public and private sector partnerships that will build equitable workforce pipelines statewide, and reaffirm the Biden-Harris administration’s efforts to create a generation of good-paying jobs while addressing the climate crisis. 

“Through President Biden and Vice President Harris’s Investing in America agenda, we have made significant progress in delivering good jobs and economic security to communities across the country,” said Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su, who leads the workforce development partnership. “Here in North Carolina, that means $10.3 billion of investments in safe roads and bridges, clean air and water, and renewable energy. With today’s announcement - and through partnerships of those in this room - we are going to make sure that every single cent of that $10.3 billion supports good-paying North Carolina jobs.” 

During the press conference, Goodwill, along with the city’s building trades and other community-based organizations, also announced the formation of the Charlotte Regional Apprenticeship Collaboration to strengthen efforts in Greater Charlotte to develop pipelines of diverse and equitable apprenticeships.