The Eastern Kentucky Concentrated Employment Program (EKCEP)
EKCEP helps workers & businesses in Eastern Kentucky meet the challenges & seize the opportunities of today’s economy.
Headquartered in Hazard, Kentucky, EKCEP serves a population of nearly one-half million in 23 counties in the Appalachian mountains.
EKCEP operates the Kentucky Career Center JobSight network of workforce centers, which provide access to more than a dozen state and federal programs that offer employment and training assistance for jobseekers and employers all under one roof.
Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA)
Under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA), EKCEP also administers programs that help adults looking for work, workers who have been dislocated from their jobs, and economically disadvantaged young people. WIOA assistance ranges from career counseling and job search assistance to paying for tuition and providing on-the-job training opportunities.
Serving 23 mountain counties in Eastern Kentucky for over 50 years.
Throughout its five decades of service, EKCEP has exhibited extraordinary adaptability, flexibility, proficiency, and perseverance, operating the best programs possible under the prevailing legislation of the time.
STRATEGIC PLAN
OUR MISSION
EKCEP operates with a mission to prepare, advance, and expand the workforce of Eastern Kentucky.
OUR CORE VALUES
Our core values are some key components of our ongoing success and guide the work we do to develop and diversify the workforce of Eastern Kentucky.
Innovation
We must remain creative and embrace emerging technologies and opportunities to strengthen economic development now and plan for future growth and expansion.
Diversity
If Eastern Kentucky is to grow to new levels, sustain our citizens, and support both new and existing business, we must pursue economic diversification.
Collaboration
We must seek, build, and nurture collaborative partnerships that leverage the workforce system with other service providers to bring more success for jobseekers and employers than we can accomplish alone.
Adaptability
We must remain nimble and flexible in creating and delivering relevant workforce and employer services that have the most impact on jobseekers, employers, and economic development throughout the region.
Vision
To positively change the economic landscape of our region, it will take a unified strategic effort and focused planning powered by a strong vision that guides education, economic development, and workforce partners.
OUR VISION
Our vision for Eastern Kentucky includes goals to expand our influence with other key components in the workforce system to have a more tangible effect on job creation, education, economic development, and job placement and retention.