Breathitt Career Center

The Western Kentucky Workforce Investment Board (WKWIB) offers career and training services to customers in need of employment assistance through two Job Centers located in the Pennyrile Area Development District.  The Hopkinsville Breathitt Career Center is located with OET at 110 Riverfront Drive, Hopkinsville, (270) 889-6509. The Career Center offers a variety of agencies and services that have been brought together to provide the most effective and efficient service delivery system in the area, to contact a specific agency please look at the staff directory of the center. The WKWIB also operates a Job Center in Madisonville at JobNet, 755 Industrial Road,   270-821-9966.

For more information on the WKWIB, please contact Sheila Clark at 270-886-9484 .

Office of Vocational Rehabilitation

The Office of Vocational Rehabilitation (DVR) provides a wide range of services to individuals with disabilities to prepare for, secure, retain or regain appropriate employment. OVR works closely with the the Office of Employment and Training and other partners in the area to provide employment services to eligible individuals.

Do I qualify for Vocational Rehab?

Must have a physical or mental impairment.
If you receive Social Security disability benefits, you qualify.
It is not necessary to receive SSI to qualify for this program.
If your disability has interfered with getting and/or keeping a job, you may be eligible for this service.
Must be of employable age by completion of rehabilitation.

A OVR counselor, Donna Settle, is on-site on Wednesdays from 8am to 3pm at the Breathitt Career Center. Call 270-889-6509 for more information or to schedule an appointment.

Visit this OVR directory for a complete listing of OVR locations and counselors in the Hopkinsville area. 

Office for the Blind

Kentucky Office for the Blind (OFB) counselors work in conjunction with the Office of Employment and Training (OET) and other local agencies to provide job search assistance and specialized services to customers.  The Resource Center at the Breathitt Career Center offers assistive technology to the visually impaired. The Center is easily accessible by public transportation, and free parking is provided to all of our customers.

Counselors from the Kentucky Office for the Blind (OFB) provides opportunities to individuals with visual disabilities to enable them to become more independent and productive in the community and workplace. For information you may call toll free
800-222-1215 for the Bowling Green office.

The Kentucky Office for the Blind's KY Jobline provides you with the ability to search America's Job Bank without the use of a computer.  Job seekers can use a keypad telephone to have the latest job openings spoken to them over the phone via a computerized job bank system.

For more information about Jobline call toll free (800-414-5748) or the Kentucky Office for the Blind's web site at http://blind.ky.gov/jobline.asp. 

For more information about the National Federation of the Blind, click on NFB - Home.

Minority Economic Development Initiative

The Minority Economic Development Initiative (MEDI) is the vital, necessary step in the direction of total economic prosperity for Hopkinsville - Christian County. The success of MEDI through the combined efforts of other local organizations will improve the employment opportunities for minorities and others, thereby increasing the community's tax base; it will stimulate the economy through helping minorities and others enter into, remain in, and expand businesses.

MEDI provides services in employment assistance, job training and retention assistance, small business start up and expansion assistance, and mini revolving loan assistance.

For more information about MEDI, you may contact us at 270-885-9096.

Kentucky Children's Health Insurance Program (KCHIP)

What is KCHIP? The Kentucky Children's Health Insurance Program (KCHIP) provides free health insurance for Kentucky's children at no cost to the family. Uninsured children from birth to 19 years of age who live in families with income at or below 200% of the Federal Poverty Level is eligible.  

KCHIP covers everything from checkups to prescriptions, broken bones to booster shots, eyeglasses, hearing aids, dental care, behavioral health, hospital care and more.  

For more information about KCHIP you may call: 
   1-877-KCHIP-18 ((877) 524-4718)
   1-800-648-6056 for the hearing impaired

Pennyrile Area Development District

The Pennyrile Area Development District (PADD) is a regional planning and development organization working with nine counties (Caldwell, Christian, Crittenden, Hopkins, Livingston, Lyon, Muhlenberg, Todd and Trigg) in western Kentucky, collectively known as the Pennyrile region.

The PADD oversees the Workforce Investment Board which includes the Breathitt Career Center and JobNet in Madisonville. The Pennyrile Area Development District is the designated agent to provide WIA Title I services. These programs are designed to assist eligible individuals in obtaining employment and/or receiving additional training in order to obtain a job at a self-sufficient wage level.

They administer the Right Choice (non-custodial parent program) which operates in conjunction with the Workforce Investment Act and Welfare-to-Work and is designed to assist non-custodial parents who are behind in their child support payments in obtaining a job or finding a better one. This program is currently a pilot in the Christian County and Hopkins County court systems.

Kentucky Community & Technical College System

Kentucky Community & Technical College System (KCTCS) provides academic and technical associate degrees; diploma and certificate programs in occupational fields; pre-baccalaureate education; adult, continuing and developmental education; customized training for business and industry; and distance learning opportunities.

The Hopkinsville Community College has five locations: in Hopkinsville at 720 North Drive, 270-886-3291; an extended campus on Fort Campbell at the English Army Education Center, Room 135 202 Bastogne Ave., 270-798-7418; as well as, Elkton, Cadiz, and Princeton. For information on Adult Education programs at Hopkinsville Community College, go here.

Please see our education section for local education providers and education links.

Department of Community Based Services (DCBS)
Department of Community Based Services (DCBS) is responsible for child and adult protection, foster care and adoption, and services to enhance family self-sufficiency, including food stamps and cash assistance.

Department of Community Based Services Offices:

Caldwell County
Christian County
Lyon County
Todd County
Trigg County

The Lakes Service Service Region:

The counties of the Lakes Service Region are located in south western Kentucky and serves the following counties: Ballard, Caldwell, Calloway, Carlisle, Christian, Crittenden, Fulton, Graves, Hickman, Hopkins, Livingston, Lyon, Marshall, McCracken, Muhlenberg, Trigg and Todd)

Experience Works

Experience Works helps low-income seniors, many with multiple barriers to employment, get the training they need to find good jobs in their local communities.

Experience Works is a national, charitable, community-based organization.  Originally named Green Thumb, and chartered in 1965 as a small, rural demonstration program, Experience Works has grown to be the nation's leading provider of training, employment, and community service for low-income older people.

For more information, contact Charlotte Carter at 270-889-6509, ext. 263.

Adult Education and Literacy

Through the combined efforts of local organizations, the Public School System and Adult Education free GED and Academic Upgrade classes are offered along with a number of other free programs and services.

GED classes provide educational opportunities to adults who wish to continue beyond AE classes, allowing them to achieve a high school equivalency, and to enable them to increase their wage earning potential.

Suki Rechter with Adult Education, is located in the Breathitt Career Center on Monday from 12:30 pm to 3PM and on Wednesday from 8:00 AM to 11:00AM, or call 270-889-6509.

For information on T.A.B.E. and GED testing at Hopkinsville Community College, click here.

"LEARN MORE.....EARN MORE" 

English as a Second Language (ESL)

English as a Second Language (ESL) classes offered through Adult Education and Literacy are designed for non-English-speaking adults.  These classes include reading and writing in English, English conversational skills, and American-life skills.  There are also a number of agencies and organizations in the Christian County area that provide these services to the community. 

For information on ESL at Hopkinsville Community College, click here.

	SKILL Program – Provides customized workplace essential skills classes to business and industry which enhance worker skills enabling them to cope with their occupations and increase wage earning potential.
	Customized ABE/GED – Provides general ABE/GED instruction using curricula customized by using artifacts from the workplace.

Pennyrile Allied Community Services

The Pennyrile Allied Community Services is a member of the Kentucky Association for Community Action providing services in the counties of Caldwell, Christian, Crittenden, Hopkins, Lyon, Livingston, Muhlenberg, Todd and Trigg. CAC works in partnership with other community based organizations to promote self-sufficiency of individuals, families, and communities.  Community Action Agencies across Kentucky provide a comprehensive range of services for individuals in need.  

The Pennyrile Allied CAC is located at 1100 Liberty St, Hopkinsville, KY 42240
270-886-6341.

Job Corps

Job Corps is the largest residential education and training program in the United States for disadvantaged youth ages 16 through 24. The mission of the Job Corps program is to help economically disadvantaged young adults become responsible, employable and productive citizens by providing them with opportunities to develop the vocational, educational and social skills needed to succeed.

Jennifer Hancock and Stephanie Ralston are the Job Corps representatives in the Breathitt Career Center. You may contact them for more information at 270-889-6509.

The closest full Job Corps office to the Hopkinsville Area is in Greenville at the Muhlenberg Job Corps Center, Hwy 181 North, Greenville, 270-338-5460. For all Kentucky Job Corps call 1-800-585-4052.

Kentucky Farmworkers Program

The Kentucky Farmworker Programs, Inc. is a private, non-profit corporation, which offers a full range of manpower and supportive services to farmworkers. Kentucky Farmworker Program services are available to farmworkers and their families who during the eligibility determination period (any consecutive 12-month period within the 24-month period preceding application for enrollment) earned at least $800 in farmwork; and who has been primarily employed in farmwork on a seasonal basis;and have total family incomes at or below the level of poverty as defined by the Federal Government.

KFP Manpower Program starts with recruitment and follows the client through training into employment and six month after employment. KFP can and does offer whatever assistance the farmworker client needs to make the change into full-time employment.

Lisa Lewis, a Kentucky Farmerworkers Program Specialist is stationed in the Breathitt Career Center and may be contacted at 270-889-6509, ext. 239.

Army Career and Alumni Program

The Army Career and Alumni Program, commonly referred to as ACAP, provides job assistance for all transitioning soldiers, DoD civilian employees, and their family members 180 days prior to separation through 90 days after separation.

Promoting Re-employment Opportunities for Veterans (PROVET)
TAP (Transition Assistance Program)
Facilitators U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)
Workforce Essentials (formerly Private Industry Council)
Kentucky Job Services and Tennessee Job Services

For assistance at Fort Campbell, please call 270 -798-4202, or stop by 5661 Screaming Eagle Boulevard, Room 119.

Tennessee Division of Employment & Workforce Development

The Division of Employment and Workforce Development is responsible for delivering the department's employment and educational services to employers and job seekers with single points of contact and customized packages of services.

For businesses, we are a source for more skilled workers, recruitment and training services.

For job seekers, we are a source for job training, information, placement and opportunities.

The Division's goal is to bring together Tennessee workers and employers in a safe, profitable workplace. They do that through a wide range of programs offering everything from adult education programs to retraining opportunities for workers who have lost their jobs to professional job applicants seeking a career change.

Tennessee Career Centers and local Labor and Workforce Development offices are where employers and job seekers come together. Employers can access job information, explore tax credits and have qualified job applicants referred to their companies. For more information, please call 1-800-255-5872.