Monday, August 4, 2008 

(315)  798-5800

Picente Honors PAR Government, Rome Research;
Highlights Achievements of College Internships

            Oneida County Executive Anthony J. Picente, Jr. today honored PAR Government Systems Corporation (PGSC) and Rome Research Corporation, subsidiaries of PAR Technology Corporation, for their outstanding and continuing efforts to support the future of Oneida County ’s workforce by hiring more than 50 interns in the past 10 years through their participation the Oneida County College Corps Internship Program.

            “PGSC and Rome Research have made a strong commitment to the future by serving as a site where students get hands-on experience in key technology areas,” Picente said, noting that PAR Government / Rome Research has had more than 50 internships since it began participating in the Oneida County College Student Corps in 1998. “The concept of internships to support the growth of our workforce is something everyone supports; this is an outstanding example of putting concepts into practice for the good of the company, the interns and Oneida County .”

            “Internships are an investment in the future that we believe is an important strategy for both our company and for our community,” said President of PAR Government, Stephen P. Lynch. “The College Corps helps to support our efforts to attract the workforce we need for growth and success, and it also helps us as we provide local students with the opportunity to see their home towns in a very different way. As an employer, even in the short term, we gain because the students we have as interns want to make a difference and are willing to work hard on projects. The program helps everyone: Our area gets a pipeline of potential workers who want to come back and have their foot in the door; employers like us get a first look at the great talent produced by our colleges, and the students get experience that will help them in college and when they look for jobs.”

            PAR Government Systems Corporation is an information technology company providing software-based solutions to Federal, State, and local Government agencies as well as private industry customers. Rome Research provides solutions to complex technical, logistical, and management problems. Rome Research is one of the nation's leading providers of management and engineering service solutions to the Department of Defense and other Government and commercial customers. 

Rome Area Chamber of Commerce Chairman of the Board Douglas W. Bartell said, “ Oneida County ’s College Corps will help open the eyes of students to the kinds of opportunities that exist in the area. Showcasing opportunities to college interns not only helps our region attract students looking for work, but also helps the area sell itself to these students where it really matters – on the job. PGSC and Rome Research are to be commended for their efforts to work with the county and help us to attract and retain the workforce of the future.”

            Oneida County Workforce Development Director David Mathis said that the example of PGSC and Rome Research is one that can be copied by other employers. “Every business has a project or two that needs to be done, but never gets done because no one has the drive to do it. Every business can use an energetic worker to help move a project along faster. In short, every business can benefit from having interns because it is good for the organization. Interns come in ready to prove their worth, to offer new ideas and to change the world. That’s the kind of energy that helps every workplace,” Mathis said.

            Picente said college students don’t always know about the types of opportunity that exist in their home region. “ Oneida County employers are doing business around the globe, competing successfully with the world, and developing cutting-edge products and services. Students may not know that. They won’t know it until they get inside our growing companies to see for themselves the great things happening in our region,” Picente said. “If we want to show our young people that there is a new region taking shape, there is no better way to do this than by bringing them into workplaces as interns so they can share their energy and creativity with employers, and also learn what the region really has to offer in terms of careers.”

            Andrew LaBarge of Sauquoit, a senior at Clarkson majoring in Computer Engineering, said that the internship has been a major part of his plans to return to the area after graduation next May, “I definitely plan to move back to the area after college,” he said. “What I have done here is work on things that directly relate to what I learned in school; it’s hands-on work and not just the theory.”

LaBarge said he didn’t know much about PAR Government / Rome Research before his internship, but is glad the College Corps provided him an opportunity to learn about this leading-edge employer. “I’ve had the opportunity to show what I can do, and I have gained a lot of experience from people who have taken the time to work with me,” he said. “This is a great program for showing people what the area has to offer and for getting people back to the area.”

Gregory Smith, of Westmoreland, a PAR Government / Rome Research software engineer who was a College Corps intern in Rome during 2001 and 2002 while working towards his computer science degree from RIT, found that what started out as an internship grew into a career that took him to other PAR locations before coming home. “I like to hike, canoe and kayak; this area is so close to all the things you can do in the Adirondacks that I wanted to come back here to live,” he said.

Smith said the College Corps internship helped him work for PAR Government / Rome Research after graduation. “The internship helped me get my foot in the door. Other people were scrambling to find something, but because of the experience I had here, and the experience they had with me, I had an advantage. They had an opening for me and I was glad to take it. Now, I’m here in a great company and living in an area with all the activities there are in the Adirondacks . The internship really helped get this all started.”

  Board of Legislators Chairman Gerald Fiorini, who was one of the creators of the program, said PGSC and Rome Research’s outstanding support of the program is the type of visionary effort the county was hoping for when it created the program. “The College Student Corps is doing a terrific job of helping our college students understand that good jobs and exciting opportunities exist in the Mohawk Valley ,” Fiorini said. “When you talk to employers and students who have been a part of this program, they are full of optimism and hope -- just what this region needs. PGSC and Rome Research have been outstanding participants and made a major commitment to the future of the region’s workforce. I am proud to have helped develop this program so that it can demonstrate to our college students that there are great jobs at outstanding companies right here in their hometowns. For some students, the internship may change their job plans. Even more than that, the College Corps is about changing attitudes and highlighting opportunities.”

 Legislator Stephen Roefaro , who this year secured additional funding to support the College Corps program, said:  “Forging an early connection to students helps them to develop a relationship with a company and with the area in a very different way from what they knew in high school. The College Corps lets area employers put their best foot forward to attract new talent and it gives the region the chance to show young workers that there are changes taking place and that the jobs here are every bit as exciting as those anywhere else. The Oneida County College Student Corps makes connections, changes attitudes and benefits both employers and students. It is a great program.”

            “PAR’s investment is really an investment for the region, because these are job areas where we are going to need skilled workers,” Picente said, noting that State Department of Labor estimates project a 57% growth in the need for systems analysts, a 43% growth for software engineers, and a 37% growth for network administrators. “The numbers show that there is opportunity here for a high tech workforce. Because of our efforts to develop the Marcy Nano-Center Site, we are working hard so that as the students who are now in college move towards graduation, we can develop even more opportunities for them in the high-growth technology area.”

            The Oneida County College Student Corps was created in 1998 by the Oneida County Board of Legislators. Under the program, County Government works in partnership with employers. Employers and the county each pay half of the cost of an intern’s salary for the 200 hours of a standard internship. Students are paid $8 an hour and usually work between 25 and 35 hours a week. The summer internships last between 6 and 8 weeks. A 2007 Program Evaluation found that of the interns not still in college or graduate school, 38% were working in the area.