What this certification means to AMS and the Santa Clarita Valley community is that the educational, training and apprenticeship programs currently in effect at AMS can be continued and extended into even more arenas benefiting job seekers and families in the community.
In its path towards the Social Enterprise achievement, AMS received recognition as a B-Corporation several months ago, based on years of building ground-breaking workforce development programs in cooperation with College of the Canyons. A successful social enterprise has the same goal as a B-Corp, which is to uphold a social mission while maximizing the productivity and sustainability of the business.
Plans are currently in effect to start a Pre-Apprentice Program which will serve job-seekers who may have had difficulty retaining employment due to life circumstances, such as single parenthood. There is an Apprentice Program currently taking place at AMS which is a first of its kind in the US. This program, as well as a number of educational programs, has set AMS apart and led to the Social Enterprise certification.
Ken Wiseman, CEO of AMS, had this to say about what the new certification will allow AMS to achieve: “At AMS, our most valuable resource is our people. The rewards of our getting people started in a successful career pays dividends to our community, our organization, our personnel, and ultimately to our customer. Achieving the Social Enterprise status will help us more formally obtain workforce development grants with specific targeted goals towards providing career opportunities to struggling job seekers within our community.”