Jackson Free Press

Bill McChester, 66, is the owner and operator of STEP-UP Pre Employment Trainers, Inc, a 501(c)(3) non-profit based in Jackson. STEP-UP's mission is to enhance the quality of life for primarily disadvantaged, low and moderately low-income individuals in Hinds County.

"People need to know and understand what causes poverty; who's in it; how do we get out of it and how it affects all of us," McChester said. "My organization is getting ready to launch our free step-up training for those needing it most: those in poverty or near it's borders."

MCChester started STEP-UP in 2011 as Coastal Area Pre-Employment Trainers, Inc. The organization teaches essential job skills to low-income individuals.

"I looked around and saw the plight of the average person in Mississippi (and saw that) they were in need of employment," McChester said. "There were so many people in poverty, and they were in need of something like this. People were just not trained for the various jobs that are being offered today."

McChester is looking to provide basic communications, computer and typing skills, as well as training in the use of Microsoft Office Suite, Internet use and email programs. Plans are in place to teach people how to write and submit resumes and conduct job interviews. STEP-UP will also provide referral services, help in securing medical and mental-health care and provide day-care facilities for program participants.

"The key thing is teaching people how to keep a job after getting one," McChester said. "We hope to prepare these people for employment and turn them into self-providing citizens."

McChester is originally from Corpus Christi, Texas. He attended the University of Southern Mississippi and Gulf Coast Community College, where he majored in computer science and participated in various military-sponsored college programs during his more than 21 years in the Air Force. In 2010 McChester met his current wife, Dorothy McChester, who is the School to Careers Coordinator for Jackson Public Schools. They married in 2011 and moved to Jackson. McChester has a son, Kiepf McChester, who lives in Gulfport.

STEP-UP is looking for assistance in getting its serviced started later this month. The program has had a lack of facilities and funding until recently. McChester is partnering with Mississippi Counseling in Jackson Square Promenade to get STEP-UP underway. McChester is looking for volunteers to aid in setting up the program's new facilities and in conducting training. If you are interested in volunteering to assist the STEP-UP program or would like more information, contact Bill McChester at 228-547-5082.