Blog

Last year, Cox and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Metro Atlanta (BBBSMA) joined forces to launch a new approach to mentoring with a program called Beyond School Walls. Though other BBBS affiliates had tried the program, this was the first of its kind for Atlanta. This program combines traditional mentorship with an immersive educational experience. The one simple, but very important element that makes this program different than traditional mentoring programs is location. 

Lubbock is home to Texas Tech University (TTU), which has eight satellite campuses located within the “bigness” of the West Texas region: Abilene, Amarillo, El Paso, Fredericksburg, Highland Lakes, Junction, Midland, and Odessa. While you may not be familiar with these towns, you are probably familiar with the problems that face their workforces.

As the labor market tightens and the pace of technological change continues to accelerate, it’s becoming an increasingly common theme that the traditional “one-and-done” model of education is over. As a result, employers, policymakers, and analysts alike are increasingly calling for new approaches to lifelong learning that will help upskill and re-skill individuals to compete and succeed in a fast-changing economy. In this shifting landscape education and workforce organizations are joining forces to experiment with new models with the potential to create pathways to opportunity and economic mobility. 

This past spring, members of the Information Technology Alliance (ITA) visited technology workforce development nonprofit i.c.stars prior to the start of their Chicago conference. As part of a Solve-A-Thon activity, designed and led by i.c.stars graduates, the group ended up discussing an unusual topic in technology: re-entry hiring.