South Louisiana Community College (SLCC) is proud to announce the reappointment of Erika Milton to the St. Landry Parish Economic Development Board. Milton is the T.H. Harris Campus Director in Opelousas; she is responsible for campus operations and SLCC’s community mission in St. Landry Parish. Milton has been with SLCC for 16 years and her position has given her a special understanding of the workforce needs in the area.
“Higher education is important to economic leaders in all our communities. Training skilled workers and preparing them for the workforce are key factors for economic growth. Industries working together with higher education creates a more trained workforce and that tends to create higher wages, which impacts the growth of the community,” explains Milton.
The St. Landry Economic Development Board is designed to move St. Landry Parish forward through the creation and implementation of economic and community development. Their initiatives are designed to bring growth and prosperity to the parish and surrounding communities. Milton says their alignment with SLCC’s mission for community growth is a perfect fit.
Executive Director and CEO of St. Landry Economic Development Board, Bill Rodier agrees: “We have a very close partnership, and we work together on the ever-changing and evolving needs that are present in this area. It’s valuable to have someone like Erika Milton that is a representative of SLCC; T.H. Harris in Opelousas is critically important to our economic future.”
Since Milton’s appointment to the board, the T.H. Harris campus has started the LPN to RN Transition Program. This program is designed for currently employed licensed practical nurses (LPN) to complete accelerated academic coursework in preparation for the national registered nursing (RN) licensure exam. The St. Landry Economic Development Board supported the program, according to Milton, because they can directly see the value of working together with SLCC.
“The LPN to RN program has been fantastic, we learned from the pandemic the importance of skilled workers in the medical field. This program is helping the community and will continue for years to come,” says Milton.
Milton serves on several committees on the St. Landry Economic Development Board, including the Executive and Human Resources committees. Her new term on the board will last three years.
For more information on the T.H. Harris Campus and programs, please visit the T.H. Harris Campus page on our website.