MomForce program helps mothers rejoin the workforce after years away

ATLANTA — Stay-at-home moms who are thinking about going to work have a safe way to do that thanks to a program at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta (CHOA).

It’s called MomForce.

Channel 2′s Lori Wilson spoke with one mother about getting back out there after spending years at home.

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“I have been out of the workforce for 12 years, so a lot has changed,” Melissa Cooper said.

After spending years raising her four kids, including two with heart conditions, now just might be the perfect time for Cooper to get back out in the world to work.

“I have four children, they are 14, 12, 9, and 8... almost 8,” she said.

Cooper worked in marketing and advertising for five years before taking 12 years off to raise her children and says now she’s mastered a whole new set of skills too.

“I kind of call myself the COO of the Cooper house,” she said.

Children’s Healthcare CAO Linda Matzigkeit created the MomForce program after a trip abroad where she saw a need.

“I truly think this is a great pipeline for us of talent,” Matzigkeit said. “I came back from this trip and I said we’re doing this for the moms of the world!”

“The biggest, daunting part of re-entering the workforce is just how much technology’s changed,” Cooper said.

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“They get that computer skill training, communications training, presentation skills training. So they’re paid and then they get all these other perks,” Matzigkeit said.

Matzigkeit says her goal is to expand the program, not just at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, but to share the program with other businesses too.

“The empowerment that we give them. They’re wearing their children’s badge and they’re saying my kids are so proud of me. You know, it just warms my heart,” Matzigkeit said.

Cooper said she’s excited to see what’s next.

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“I let them know this is something that I thought would help me even be a better mom,” Cooper said.

To qualify for the program, moms must have a college degree and be at least three years out of the workforce.

The next MomForce program will be this fall.

You can find out more about the program by clicking on the link here.

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