MOUNT VERNON - A joint initiative by Continental Tire North America, Rend Lake College and Southern Illinois University Carbondale will allow Continental workers to get higher education degrees without stepping foot on a campus.

The initiative is an expansion of a pilot program the company started with RLC in 2005. It's part of the company's Continental University program that is based on partnerships between Continental and local colleges and universities worldwide, said Heinz-Gerhard Wente, executive board member and global head of human resources for CTNA's parent company, Continental AG.

The program provides employees with easy and affordable access to higher education. Classes are conducted on site at the plant and are timed to accommodate workers' schedules.

Plant employees have had the opportunity to pursue associate degrees in business, certifications, employee training and continuing education through the pilot program, said RLC President Mark Kern.

Continental provides classroom space and, with RLC, state-of-the-art equipment for student use.

So far, 1,450 of the plant's 2,000-plus employees have taken classes through the program; 42 are actively pursuing associate degrees.

"RLC made a substantial investment (in the program)," Kern said. "We think this initiative will grow and grow and grow. You can start out here with your high school diploma and get a four-year degree right here at the plant. We're very proud to be a part of this."

With the addition of SIUC to the program, workers can obtain a bachelor's degree in technical resource management. Course offerings and majors are expected to expand over the coming years.

"Our mission is simple," Wente said. "We want to contribute to the career advancement of our employees and align their studies with the business needs of the company."

Wente said Continental is expanding rapidly on a global level and will use Continental University as a method of recruiting and retaining workers.

Continental University in Mount Vernon is one of nine others launched by the company worldwide and the first for the United States.

SIU President Glenn Poshard said the partnership will help the company and its workers compete in a rapidly expanding global economy.

"In education, there are two key words: Accessibility and affordability," Poshard said. "You can't get greater access than getting a degree at the place where you work, and you can't find greater affordability than having your company pay for your education. (The program) will help the workers at this plant become the best they can be."

The program will start offering online classes this fall, and SIUC instructors will begin to teach on site by spring 2008.

Larry Woolard of the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity said he hopes the example set by the partnership will be followed statewide.

"A lot of community colleges have the chance to work with businesses, but none have excelled to the level RLC has by putting together a partnership like this," Woolard said. "Now SIUC is joining forces with them. This is the kind of example we hope will spread across the state."

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