National Press Release

June 8 kick-off event at Walsh College Troy campus to feature panel discussion, networking workshop, and job seekers networking event

TROY, Mich., June 2 /PRNewswire/ -- Walsh College and Ford Motor Company Fund and Community Services have teamed up to offer a new series of Walsh College's successful "Take Charge" workshops for the unemployed.

The new round of workshops features more days, more topics and expanded career content. All are provided at no cost to participants.

Walsh College and Ford Motor Company Fund and Community Services will host a kick-off event from 9 a.m. to noon on Monday, June 8, 2009, at the Walsh College Troy campus, which is located at 3838 Livernois Road (near the corner of Livernois and Wattles Roads).

The kick-off event includes:

    --  9:30 - 10 a.m.:  Welcome and Success Stories from 'Take
        Charge' Attendees

Jeffery W. Barry Center Auditorium, Troy Campus

Walsh College President and CEO Stephanie Bergeron and Ford Motor Company Fund and Community Services President Jim Vella will welcome attendees and introduce a panel featuring faculty teaching the workshops and previous attendees who will share their success stories.

    --  10 - 11 a.m. "Networking: Creating Success in Today's Job
        Search"

Jeffery W. Barry Center Auditorium, Troy Campus

Following the panel, the Walsh College Career Services Department will lead a workshop covering networking do's and don'ts in the quest for a job.

    --  11 a.m. - Noon: Job Seekers Networking

Jeffery W. Barry Center Lobby, Troy Campus

Participants will be invited to participate in a Job Seekers Networking event in the lobby area of the Jeffery W. Barry Center. Attendees can practice their networking skills, meet new friends who are also in transition, as well as learn about job opportunities that other attendees may be aware of.

"The Walsh College partnership with the Ford Motor Company Fund and Community Services illustrates how business and business educators are creating a path so that those who are unemployed can begin and pursue new careers in business," said Stephanie Bergeron, president and CEO, Walsh College. "Our particular focus is on fields with growing demand."

The "Take Charge" program began in January 2009 in response to the growing displacement of Michigan's workforce. The workshop sessions filled up in just four days. The "Take Charge" program will receive a 2009 Michigan Economic Bright Spots Award on June 2 from Corp! magazine.

Topics for a second round of workshops in March were based on recent research. In the fourth quarter of 2008, Walsh College and EPIC-MRA conducted a survey with 350 representatives in the emerging industries of advanced automotive materials and manufacturing, life sciences, alternative energy, defense contracting, and homeland security.

Through the Ford Motor Company Fund and Community Services partnership, Walsh will launch the next round of "Take Charge" workshops on June 8. Workshop topics range from Microsoft Word to Social Media to Statistics to Job Search Strategies.

"Ford Motor Company Fund and Community Services is pleased to participate along with Walsh College to continue the 'Take Charge' initiative," said Jim Vella, president, Ford Motor Company Fund and Community Services. "Our workforce is one of Michigan's greatest strengths, and Ford is committed to help the unemployed navigate this process."

Spaces are limited per workshop, and registration is required. Each attendee receives a certificate of attendance. Visit the Walsh College Web site www.walshcollege.edu/takecharge for details and to register. Check the Walsh College Web site often for updates. For more information, e-mail takecharge@walshcollege.edu

ABOUT WALSH COLLEGE

Founded in 1922, Walsh College is one of Michigan's largest graduate business colleges. The College offers upper-division undergraduate and graduate business and technology degree and certificate programs to 4,600 students at locations in Troy, Novi, Harper Woods, and Clinton Township, as well as online. For more information, please visit www.walshcollege.edu.

AboUT Ford Motor Company Fund and Community Services

Ford Motor Company Fund and Community Services is committed to creating opportunities that promote corporate citizenship, philanthropy, volunteerism and cultural diversity for those who live in the communities where Ford operates. Celebrating its 60th anniversary in 2009 and made possible by funding from Ford Motor Company, Ford Motor Company Fund supports initiatives and institutions that foster innovative education, auto-related safety, and American heritage and legacy. National programs include Ford Partnership for Advanced Studies, which provides high school students with academically rigorous 21st century learning experiences, and Driving Skills for Life, a teen-focused auto safety initiative. The Ford Volunteer Corps, established in 2005, continues Ford's legacy of caring worldwide. Through the Volunteer Corps, Ford employees and retirees participate in a wide range of volunteer projects in their communities. For more information on programs made possible by Ford Motor Company Fund and Community Services, visit www.community.ford.com.

SOURCE Walsh College