Higher education costs, a booming population and aging workforce are all challenges identified by health care executives at the state and local level in a first-time health care forum held at Austin PBS in August.
Category: In the News
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More than 2,000 Austin-area kids will get free or low-cost after-school care this year
Twenty-seven schools in the Austin area are getting free or low-cost after-school care programs this year thanks to funding from a tax rate increase Travis County voters approved in 2024.
The programs will open at schools with the most economically disadvantaged students in the Austin, Manor and Del Valle school districts. More than 2,000 pre-K and elementary school students are expected to participate. The county is working on getting after school programs to Pflugerville ISD, too, according to county documents.
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Travis County, school districts partner to expand child care access
The first contracts funded through a tax rate increase approved by voters in November and aimed at improving access to child care could be approved Tuesday by Travis County commissioners.
Three school districts — Austin, Del Valle and Manor — will use $4.85 million each year to fund 2,000 child care seats during and after the school day. Commissioners also are expected to approve a letter of intent to nonprofit Workforce Solutions Capital Area that $24.4 million will go toward contracts with child care providers next year.
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Tamara Atkinson is joining Goodwill Central Texas
Tamara Atkinson is going to Goodwill for her next job.
Atkinson will join the executive team for Goodwill Central Texas and lead the nonprofit’s workforce development efforts as chief impact officer and president of workforce advancement strategy, according to an Aug. 13 announcement. She will take on the role on Oct. 29.
Atkinson is currently CEO of Workforce Solutions Capital Area. It was announced earlier in August that she would step down from that position, which she has held since 2016, on Sept. 19.
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Tamara Atkinson to step down as CEO of Workforce Solutions Capital Area
One of Austin’s key nonprofits that focuses on workforce development is undergoing a leadership transition.
Tamara Atkinson, the longtime CEO of Workforce Solutions Capital Area, is stepping down from her role on Sept. 19, the group announced Aug. 5. Yael Lawson, the organization’s chief operations officer and a longtime employee, will step into the role in an interim capacity on Sept. 22.
No specific reason was given for Atkinson’s departure, but the announcement said she is departing with the full support of Workforce Solutions’ board and that “details about her next professional chapter will be announced in the coming weeks.”
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PFLUGERVILLE, TEXAS: How a Growing Mid-Sized Texas City Builds a Technical Workforce
The holy grail of economic development is workforce development, and no one understands that better than Jerry W. Jones Jr., executive director of the Pflugerville Community Development Corporation (PCDC).
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Austin Infrastructure Academy sees early success
The Austin Infrastructure Academy is seeing early returns on its efforts to bolster Austin’s construction and mobility workforce, and talent should start to exit the new pipeline soon.
The academy, which launched in March, has seen notable interest from the private sector and job seekers over its efforts to connect locals to training opportunities in the construction industry. It was spawned by projections that Austin won’t have enough workers as it embarks on at least $25 billion in projects, including light rail expansions, I-35 upgrades, a new convention center and a larger airport — not to mention the usual private sector construction.
“We’ve seen slow momentum, but I think it’s going to increase over the next couple of months,” said Yael Lawson, the chief operations officer for Workforce Solutions Capital Area, which oversees the academy. “We’re training people now, so we’re going to start to see them graduating and hired.”
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Megan Fortson appointed to lead Austin Infrastructure Academy
Workforce Solutions Capital Area has picked a leader to oversee a major push to bolster the region’s workforce.
Megan Fortson, who is now senior director of the Austin Infrastructure Academy, will help build out the infrastructure and construction workforce needed in the region to complete $25 billion in projects.
The Austin Infrastructure Academy — a collaboration between Workforce Solutions Capital Area, the city of Austin, Austin Community College and other local governments — officially launched in March. It’s tasked with helping fill the need for 10,000 new jobs annually in the infrastructure field that are being created through major projects like the expansion of Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, the expansion of I-35, the redevelopment of the Austin Convention Center and the buildout of the Austin Transit Partnership’s light rail project.
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Elected officials highlight need for trade job apprenticeships in Austin area
Austin Mayor Kirk Watson and U.S. Rep. Greg Casar (D-Austin) celebrated graduates working to fill trade jobs in Central Texas on Wednesday, while highlighting efforts to further close the gap.
Meeting the growing need is a challenge statewide. Texas has a shortage of workers in construction, manufacturing and other skilled trades.
On Wednesday morning, North America’s Building Trades Unions brought its national Opportunity Pipeline Tour to the UA Local 286 Training Center in East Austin to celebrate local graduates of an apprentice readiness program.
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Jobs and redevelopment take center stage in annual economic development report
The Economic Development Department says it supported more than 27,000 jobs and distributed over $54 million in community investments during fiscal year 2024, according to its recently released annual report. The report outlines the department’s evolving priorities, including the transfer of its cultural programs to a new Office of Arts, Culture, Music, and Entertainment and a sharpened focus on workforce development, business support and place-based redevelopment.
City manager T.C. Broadnax described the department’s 2024 efforts as a foundation for “inclusive economic growth.” Interim EDD director Anthony Segura called the year transformative, citing the launch of the Austin Infrastructure Academy as a model for local economic mobility.
The academy received $5 million in city funding and launched in partnership with Austin Community College, Travis County, and Workforce Solutions Capital Area. It is designed to prepare Austinites for jobs tied to large public infrastructure projects, including Project Connect and the airport terminal expansion. According to the report, 286 residents received job training and 153 secured self-sustaining wages upon completion.