MONTGOMERY, Alabama – AIDT, Alabama’s primary workforce development agency, marked 50 years as a central player in the state’s economic growth through its mission of connecting and training Alabama workers with companies across the state.

The milestone was marked with a ceremony at Riverwalk Stadium in Montgomery, attended by Governor Kay Ivey and representatives of companies assisted by AIDT.

“Fifty years is an incredible milestone,” said Ed Castile, director of AIDT and deputy secretary of the Alabama Department of Commerce. “A group of people had a vison to modernize the workforce development model.

“Fifty years later and we must be doing something right,” he added.

The event featured a fly-over by an Airbus A321 aircraft, made at the company’s factory in Mobile, and an Alabama debut for the Toyota Corolla Cross, an all-new sport utility that is being produced at the Mazda Toyota Manufacturing facility in Huntsville. AIDT has assisted both companies with workforce development support.

“Simply said, Mazda Toyota Manufacturing would not be able to recruit, assess, hire and train up to 4,000 team members without the partnership with AIDT,” Mark Brazeal, vice president of administration for Mazda Toyota, told Business Alabama.

“It is a partnership built on mutual respect and mutual trust,” he added. “It is a great partnership and we are so lucky to have AIDT in the state of Alabama.”

FAR-RANGING IMPACT

Since 1971, AIDT has trained approximately 1 million job-seekers for 5,200 companies across the state. In addition to the main office in Montgomery, AIDT operates seven training centers plus several additional satellite locations throughout Alabama. The organization maintains a fleet of mobile training units that can bring training classes to remote locations in the state.

AIDT, whose economic impact on Alabama is calculated at $7 billion annually, provides training in a wide variety of fields, from aviation to robotics.

“One of Alabama’s key advantages in economic development is our workforce training programs, which provides a foundation for the support system we have in place to help companies in many different industries find and develop the skilled workers they need to achieve success,” said Greg Canfield, Secretary of the Alabama Department of Commerce.

“AIDT is at the core of our workforce development efforts, and its contribution to the state’s economic growth over the decades has been immense,” he added. “Fortunately for us, AIDT’s culture of innovation will carry that impact forward far into the future.”

Congratulations @aidtedu on fifty years of workforce development and economic prosperity! Thank you for incentivizing various companies to relocate to the thriving yellowhammer state and for supporting my #StrongStartStrongFinish initiative. #alpolitics #aledchat pic.twitter.com/Y1WjrrP4Bo

— Governor Kay Ivey (@GovernorKayIvey) June 17, 2021

MEETING TOMORROW’S NEEDS

Consistently ranked as one of the top workforce development programs in the nation by industry and workforce publications, AIDT continues to stay at the forefront of workforce development through a willingness to evolve.

“Part of the key to our success is that we are constantly looking for ways to improve upon our processes,” Castile said. “AIDT not only delivers what companies need to meet their demands today but continues to innovate and develop ways to deliver what companies will need in the future.”

AIDT merged with the Alabama Department of Commerce in 2012.

Thanks @AirbusInTheUS and @Delta for helping celebrate AIDT’s 50th Anniversary. The A321 is a beautiful bird and the Delta livery looks spectacular. pic.twitter.com/60q2Y6VhiG

— AIDT (@aidtedu) June 17, 2021

(Courtesy of Made in Alabama)