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̨��ʹٷ���վ Community College, Atmos Energy and Southcentral MS Works began a new partnership in May that provides internship opportunities for students enrolled in a Career and Technical Education (CTE) degree program. The first intern under the new partnership is Hunter Holtsinger of Brandon who will spend the summer working at Atmos’ location in Jackson. He is a sophomore at ̨��ʹٷ���վ studying Mechanical Engineering Technology. “At ̨��ʹٷ���վ, we are focused on providing quality programs for our communities and students,” said Dean of Construction and Manufacturing Jason Webb. “We are very happy to have this partnership with Atmos Energy and for the opportunities they can provide to our students.” Current data shows that 69 percent of jobs in Mississippi fall within the definition of “middle-skill” skills that require more than a high school diploma but less than a four-year college degree. However, only 37 percent of the state’s workforce has the requirements to fill a “middle-skill” job. The way to close this skill gap for thousands of Mississippi workers is through partnerships that combine classroom training and industry credentials, along with practical work experience and the development of necessary interpersonal skills. As a result, employers will benefit by having a workforce that possesses the skills and core competencies for them to remain competitive in a global economy. This internship opportunity provides a competitive wage for the students through funding from the Workforce Innovations and Opportunities Act (WIOA). The WIOA internship gives students the opportunity to pair what they learn in the classroom with a hands-on, paid work experience. “This internship is part of our strategy to grow relationships with our community college partners across the state of Mississippi. The goal is to establish internships with community colleges across our service territory to grow our bench of talent into our field operation positions. We believe this is not only a great way to recruit new employees for our company, but the partnership also gives back to the communities we serve,” said Glenn Partrick, Vice President, Human Resources-Mississippi Division.