FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Friday, June 17, 2011

Contact: Brice Freeman, Communications, 410-396-1910, bfreeman@oedworks.com Kate Schmelyun, Communications, 410-396-7336, kschmelyun@oedworks.com

Mayor Rawlings-Blake Honors Congressman Cummings at U.S. Conference of Mayors Annual Meeting Cummings recognized for his sustained support of workforce development initiatives for Baltimore City residents Baltimore, Maryland (June 17, 2011) – Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake today honored Congressman Elijah E. Cummings for the many years of strong support he has given to Baltimore City’s workforce development initiatives, many of which have been delivered through the Mayor’s Office of Employment Development’s Career Center Network. He has been particularly supportive of programs that provide services for ex-offenders who are looking to turn their lives around and re-enter the job market. “Baltimore City is fortunate to have such a strong advocate in Congressman Cummings serving our citizens’ best interests at the federal level,” said Mayor Rawlings-Blake. “Today I am honored to recognize his steadfast support and unwavering commitment to providing vital workforce development initiatives that connect all City residents to career development services, job training, and employment opportunities.” Mayor Rawlings-Blake honored Congressman Cummings by presenting him with an award at the annual meeting of the United States Conference of Mayors’ (USCM) Workforce Development Council, which was attended by council members and other workforce development professionals from major cities across the country. “As gratifying as it is to be recognized for my work in creating jobs, I must applaud our Mayor and her Office of Employment Development,” Congressman Cummings said. “We have worked together to create the well-paying jobs of this high-tech century – and to do all that we can to assure that our citizens are trained to fill these new jobs.” He continued, “Those in the Congress who have been pushing to cut job training are shortsighted. We must find the political will to reverse those misguided cuts to federal job training funding. Workforce development professionals can and should lead that effort by advocating for the employment initiatives that have worked in their communities. I am confident that the Mayor and I will learn from them today.”

Karen Sitnick, director of the Mayor’s Office of Employment Development (MOED) and immediate past president of the USCM Workforce Development Council, said, “This meeting is an ideal venue to recognize Congressman Cummings’ contributions and highlight the positive results Baltimore City has achieved in the area of workforce development, especially in connecting ex-offenders and at-risk young adults with resources to successfully enter the labor pool.” In 2010, Congressman Cummings was the lead sponsor of a $500,000 Baltimore City Re-entry Employment Center grant from the U.S. Department of Justice, which provided significant support for the overall operation of the Re-entry Center (ReC) at MOED’s Northwest One-Stop Career Center located in Mondawmin Mall. The ReC is a unique re-integration center in Baltimore City offering a full range of services to any individual who has had an experience with the criminal justice system. Not every customer comes to the ReC looking for employment. However, those seeking employment have multiple challenges to address before they can effectively get and keep a job. The ReC often offers assistance in addressing quality of life needs such as securing housing, stabilizing health issues, dealing with child support and other legal concerns and provides customers a full menu of literacy, job readiness and skills training. Nearly all customers take advantage of multiple services. Services are provided by a myriad of on-site partners (Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation; University of Maryland’s School of Law; Housing Authority of Baltimore City; Maryland State Department of Education; Department of Vocational Rehabilitation to name a few) and by direct referral to the Re-entry Center Partnership Network, comprised of representatives from more than 50 organizations and agencies. The ReC opened its doors in July 2005 and has served several thousands of customers providing a broad range of services. Nearly 2,200 have been placed in jobs. Congressman Cummings also played an integral role in providing $575,000 in funding for MOED’s Career Corps – a special feature of the 2010 Baltimore City YouthWorks summer jobs program. He also was instrumental in securing more than $450,000 in funding for the Park Heights Partnership for Jobs 2008-2009. ###