The Kansas City Star, Mo., Women at Work Column.

Byline: Jilian Mincer

Oct. 3--LaurieAnn Jean-Klapproth couldn't take it anymore. The restaurant where she had worked unexpectedly closed, and she dreaded finding another bartending job.

Jean-Klapproth thought she had no choice until she noticed an advertisement for the Women's Employment Network. She reluctantly enrolled in the job training program, never expecting that it would drastically change her life.

"The greatest thing I got from WEN was the self-esteem that made me realize I wasn't stupid and that I could go further," said Jean-Klapproth, who now loves her job at the Jackson County COMBAT commission.

Women's Employment Network staff members helped her recognize that she already had many skills and tremendous potential. That confidence would persuade the sixth-grade dropout to return to school and eventually receive her college degree in social work.

Jean-Klapproth is among the almost 4,000 women who have graduated from network programs since the organization was established 15 years ago.

Though the types of women attending the program have changed in the last 15 years, the mission of the organization is still to increase a woman's confidence and to prepare her for the work force, said Leigh Klein, executive director of the program at 1734 E. 63rd St.