The Utah career pathways program in the Governor’s Office of Economic Development (GOED) recently was honored by the International Economic Development Council (IEDC).
The council presented GOED with a Silver Excellence in Economic Development Award in the category of Partnership with Educational Institutions at the IEDC annual conference in Toronto, Canada.
Career pathway programs encourage industry partners to collaborate with education leaders to address critical workforce needs. Utah businesses in aerospace manufacturing, diesel tech and life science have created work-based learning programs that connect high school students and adult learners with education pathways to quality, high-paying jobs.
“Companies across all industry sectors tell us their No. 1 challenge is workforce,” said Val Hale, GOED executive director. “Our pathways programs train students for the jobs of today and tomorrow, while connecting Utah companies to top-notch talent in our state.”
Talent Ready Utah, announced during Gov. Gary Herbert’s State of the State address in January, is building upon the pathways program and provides the resources needed to connect industry and education.
“On behalf of the IEDC board of directors and Excellence in Economic Development Awards Advisory Committee, congratulations to the Utah Governor’s Office of Economic Development,” said Michael Langley, chief executive officer of Greater MPS and the 2017 IEDC board chair. “Not only did they work to provide a necessary service to their community, but also their participation in the awards program sheds light on their stellar projects which other communities can now use as a benchmark.”
IEDC is a nonprofit membership organization serving economic developers. With more than 5,000 members, IEDC is the largest organization of its kind.