(Photos: The Wonderful Company, Shasta College, VOLT Institute)
Nominations are now open for the fourth annual 2020 Partnerships for Industry and Education (PIE) Contest, which seeks to identify and honor innovative employer-education partnerships that are successfully preparing workers to meet the needs of California’s economy.
Developed by the California Economic Summit, the Contest not only lifts up valuable partnerships but also offers the opportunity to share promising practices with a statewide network.
“As the state and local communities look towards economic recovery, partnerships between employers and educators will be even more important in preparing a skilled workforce and providing flexibility to those who may be considering a career change,” said Micah Weinberg, CEO of California Forward, which produces the California Economic Summit with its California Stewardship Network. “The PIE Contest is a great way to shine a light on successful partnerships from various sectors and regions across the state.”
Criteria for the PIE Contest includes:
- A partnership between an employer (public or private) and a California educational institution (K-12, higher education, public and/or private)
- Ability to demonstrate specific success outcomes
The top three partnerships will each earn one complimentary two-day registration to the 2020 California Economic Summit taking place on December 3-4 in Monterey and will have the opportunity to showcase their work.
Past winners have included partnerships across economic sectors such as agriculture, career technical education, aerospace manufacturing, steel manufacturing, industrial maintenance mechanics and advanced manufacturing, early childhood education, construction, and health care.
“Partnerships between employers and education are an important way for students to gain the hands-on skills needed to be successful,” said Sheneui Weber, vice chancellor of workforce and economic development for the California Community Colleges. “Across California, community colleges and other higher education and k-12 institutions are doing critical work with employers that deserves to be recognized.”
The contest seeks out individuals and organizations who are working together to better prepare the workforce for the future and provide local industry the skilled talent they need to succeed.
If you know of innovative partnerships between California employers and educators – nominate them today via the link below. You can submit more than one nomination and you can even self-nominate. Nominations are due by Friday, June 26 and staff will follow-up with nominees meeting the criteria to help with the full application process.
To learn more about previous winners, read stories from the 2019 PIE Contest and 2018 PIE Contest.
For questions about the PIE contest, please reach out to piecontest@cafwd.org.
