A rationale is presented for the establishment of a comprehensive skills center designed to provide low-cost, vocational training that would enable the unskilled and unemployed population of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, to fill area manpower needs. The report first compares the present composition of the county work force with the manpower needs of local businesses and industry, demonstrating that despite a healthy demand for skilled labor, a large segment of the population is unemployed due to a lack of education, skills, and good work habits. The report then discusses the need for a coordinated delivery system of manpower services which can assure an unsubsidized job in the private sector for each trainee. The role of a skills center in this delivery system is then explored, and three principles for its operation are enumerated: (1) the training of the educationally and economically disadvantaged should not be limited to work skills; (2) training should lead to jobs with a future; and (3) cooperative relationships must be maintained with the community, local government, and business and industry. The report concludes with a description of a proposed skills center, that includes a statement of mission and goals, an indication of faculty and staff requirements, and a proposed budget for the center's first year. (JP)