Media Contact: Debra Dennis;
ddennis@dallascollege.edu
For immediate release — Nov. 14, 2022
(DALLAS) — Dallas College is celebrating National Apprenticeship Week by highlighting apprenticeship opportunities and honoring the achievements of our apprenticeship partners in a variety of fields including manufacturing, health, education, transportation and IT.
National Apprenticeship Week takes place Nov. 14-20, and Dallas College will be involved in several events: an awards luncheon, an “apprenticeship accelerator” event that highlights the importance of learning a skill, and a signing ceremony marking the expansion of the Dallas College School of Education’s paid teacher residency apprenticeships.
Dallas College recognizes that apprenticeships are a proven way to build a pipeline into high-quality jobs that address our nation’s pressing workforce challenges such as rebuilding infrastructure, increasing the number of K-12 teachers, addressing critical supply chain demands, supporting a clean energy workforce, modernizing our cybersecurity response and responding to economic issues.
On Nov. 15, a luncheon and awards program is scheduled from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. at Bill J. Priest Center, 1402 Corinth St. in Dallas. This event is designed to recognize all of Dallas College’s apprenticeship employers as well as their apprentices. In addition to an awards ceremony for apprentices, apprenticeship partners will showcase new apprenticeship programs in a number of breakout sessions.
Anita Bedford, director of experiential learning at Dallas College, was recently named apprenticeship ambassador for the Department of Labor. She said, “Over the last four years, Dallas College has served over 3,000 apprentices. These apprentices have been employed so they are earning and learning at the same time.”
Recognizing the importance of training the next generation of teachers via apprenticeship programs that allow for paid, on-the-job learning while leading a classroom, Dallas College and Uplift Education will be hosting a signing ceremony from noon to 2 p.m. on Nov. 15, also at Bill J. Priest Center, to mark Uplift becoming the latest school system to partner with Dallas College on an apprenticeship program.
The partnership will help build a steady pipeline of well-trained teachers, putting those teachers in classrooms at Uplift and in classrooms across the region. Earlier this year, Dallas College received approval from the U.S. Department of Labor to serve as Texas’ first registered apprenticeship sponsor for teaching, with the Richardson Independent School District becoming the first to partner with Dallas College.
The Dallas Apprenticeship Accelerator Event is from 3-5 p.m. Nov. 16 at the Communities Foundation of Texas, 5500 Caruth Haven Lane in Dallas. Participants can learn about the recruitment and retention benefits offered by registered apprenticeships that help employers connect with partners and resources to meet industry needs. This event is a collaboration hosted by Dallas College, Workforce Solutions Greater Dallas and Educate Texas at Communities Foundation of Texas.
Anita Bedford, director of experiential learning at Dallas College and a recently named apprenticeship ambassador for the Department of Labor, said apprenticeships have broadened over the years to include health care, education and other industries.
“Dallas College is centered in the apprenticeship movement, serving as an example for how other community colleges can successfully implement apprenticeship programs,” Bedford said. “Over the last four years, Dallas College has served over 3,000 apprentices. These apprentices have been employed so they are earning and learning at the same time.”
Community colleges like Dallas College play a crucial role in pairing industry apprentices with workforce needs. Skill and experience contribute to solving labor issues with positive outcomes, Bedford said. And, in some instances, apprentices can enter the workforce while learning a trade. This talent pipeline is an alternative for nontraditional students and solves worker shortage and skills gaps issues for employers, she said.
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