Chase donates $40K to Ascent to help students pay for job training certificates

Special to the News-Star
·3 min read
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One of Ouachita Parish's largest employers is celebrating 30 years of operation in Monroe.

JP Morgan Chase marked the milestone Wednesday by announcing a $40,000 investment to Ascent Health, helping local students pay for job training certification fees.

Chase Manhattan Mortgage acquired Troy & Nichols from First Gibraltar Mortgage Holdings on July 6, 1993. Chase expanded the operation that was originally founded in 1982, adding $10 billion of residential mortgage loans to the center's existing servicing portfolio of $48 billion.

In 1994, Chase changed the name of the Monroe operation to Chase Manhattan Mortgage, which later evolved into Chase Home Lending.

"Chase and the local Chase team are unsung heroes of Monroe and Northeast Louisiana," Roy Heatherly, President & CEO of the Monroe Chamber of Commerce. "Each day through financial support and volunteerism they do great and heroic things with very little recognition. We are blessed beyond words to call them friends. Chase is one of the big reasons 'It's a beautiful day in Monroe, Louisiana'."

There are more than 1,000 employees at the Monroe campus supporting Chase customers across the country. Locally, mortgage servicing accounts for about 75 percent of the business and 25 percent is consumer originations and auto financing. Chase is the third-largest non-governmental employer in Northeast Louisiana.

In addition to serving customers, Chase is an active community partner in Northeast Louisiana and supports various local organizations working to drive inclusive growth throughout the region.

The investment to Ascent will help cover certification exam fees for high school students completing job readiness training courses in both Ouachita Parish and Monroe City School Systems.

"Ascent is happy to partner with Chase in service to the students of Ouachita Parish," Brady Middleton, Director of Business Development for Ascent, said. "We are excited to see the impact this grant will have on not only the students of Monroe City and Ouachita Parish Schools, but also on their skill development and job readiness training as they prepare to enter the workforce. Thank you, Chase, for helping Ascent reach our mission, 'Serve Communities. Inspire Change'."

"I'm so proud of this partnership with Ascent and its impact of removing barriers to career opportunities for young people in our region," Tania Hilburn, Managing Director and Site Lead for Chase in Monroe, said. "We're dedicated to driving economic growth that lifts up everyone in our communities. Our employees in Monroe share a passion for supporting their customers, their communities and each other."

"It's been a great experience working at Chase not just because I work alongside co-workers and supervisors who support my professional goals, but because I'm able to have a positive impact on my community," Torrence Sampson, Consultant at Custody Services for Chase in Monroe. "Whether I'm helping high schoolers with college readiness through Chase Leadership Academy or volunteering in food distribution with an internal business resource group like B.O.L.D. (Black Organization for Leadership Development), I have so many opportunities to make a difference in my community."

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This article originally appeared on Monroe News-Star: Chase donates $40K to Ascent to assist students with certifications