Terick E. Thomas has been named director of the new Creating Opportunity for Recovery Employment (CORE) program at Marshall Health.
CORE, led by the Marshall University Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine, will develop a regional system to provide job training and placement assistance for displaced workers suffering from the effects of the downturn in coal production and the opioid epidemic in rural and southern West Virginia.
Thomas brings eight years of experience in training and development to Marshall Health, including several years in training and program management at Goodwill Industries of KYOWVA and career exploration at Marshall University. Most recently, he served as a director of philanthropy for the Marshall University Foundation and as revenue specialist for the City of Huntington.
In his role as director of CORE, Thomas will coordinate the development of a regional infrastructure to provide career training and placement for displaced workers. He will also provide career advising expertise to patients regarding the job-search process, interviewing, resume, letter writing and other areas of career planning.
“My role will help connect the dots between patient care and workforce development in a way that helps the recovery process truly come full circle,” Thomas said. “Much like the other recovery initiatives underway, CORE is community based and will leverage a number of existing workforce development efforts.”
As a result of the CORE program, Marshall anticipates serving at least 1,500 West Virginians through partnerships with organizations throughout central and southern West Virginia, including the Region 1 Workforce Development Board, the West Virginia Perinatal Partnership and Coalfield Development Corporation. CORE is funded through a POWER (Partnerships for Opportunity and Workforce and Economic Revitalization) Initiative grant from the Appalachian Regional Commission, with additional funding provided by the Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation.
A two-time Marshall University graduate and former football player for the Thundering Herd, Thomas is also pursuing a doctorate from Liberty University. He lives in Huntington with his wife, Angela, and two daughters, Alaina and Victoria.
Originally from Sheanna Spence for Marshall University Communications.