Delivering Innovative

Delivering Innovative Workforce Development Solutions for Utah

By: Rachelle Ackley

The Talent Ready Utah Center offers programs that support and grow Utah’s workforce in targeted industries statewide. The center brings together representatives from industry, the Utah State Board of Education, the Utah System of Higher Education, the Department of Workforce Services, and the Utah State Legislature to cultivate increased success for the state’s businesses while also enhancing employment opportunities for Utahns.

The center’s flagship program was born out of a workforce development solution deployed for the Boeing Company in 2015. That solution became the Utah Aerospace Pathways (UAP) program. UAP has served as a template for creating additional state pathway programs in industries including life sciences, diesel technology, construction, and aviation technology.

Students earn industry-recognized credentials and a guaranteed job interview with partnered employers in high demand, high growth industry sectors through these programs. Statewide pathway programs served over 445 Utah students during 2019. In 2020, the Talent Ready Utah Center partnered with more than 100 employers to provide career exploration, realtime learning and hands-on training to pathway students.

The Talent Ready Utah Center also executes the Strategic Workforce Investment (SWI) program, which was established in 2016. Through this program, education and industry partners can receive funding from the Utah Legislature to create credentialed education pathways driven by “Stadler has been very happy with the progress our apprentices have made in the short time that we have had them.”

industry-supported work-based learning experiences. In 2019, SWI gave 2,425 students access to multiple on- and off-ramps in their career and educational pathways and employed 768 students.

In 2019, the center added two additional workforce development solutions: the Talent Ready Apprenticeship Connection (TRAC) and the Utah Works program.

TRAC supports apprenticeship programs that engage high school students in hands-on learning. High school seniors split their time between the classroom and workplace, earning an Associate of Applied Science (AAS) degree while working part-time for a participating employer. Stadler Rail first deployed this apprenticeship model in partnership with Salt Lake Community College (SLCC) and the Salt Lake City School District.

“Stadler has been very happy with the progress our apprentices have made in the short time that we have had them,” said Megan Ware, HR lead at Stadler Rail U.S. “Initially, we thought it would take around six months to see a return on investment from our first cohort of students, but after only six weeks, they were able to perform at the level of a full-time employee. They are incredibly quick to learn and have been great contributors to our team here at Stadler.”

Through the Utah Works program, the Talent Ready Utah Center partners with the Utah System of Higher Education to design pre-employment, short-term training programs that prepare participants to fill in-demand jobs. Between the three partnerships established with Davis Technical College, Ogden Weber Technical College, and SLCC, the Utah Works program has trained and placed 230 individuals in jobs with participating employers.

The Utah Works program also laid the foundation for the recent Learn & Work In Utah initiative, a program requested by the state legislature in response to the workforce impacts of COVID-19. Learn & Work In Utah received federal CARES Act funding for 150 short-term certificate and credit-based training programs that increased access to sustainable employment for displaced workers. To date, 5,456 students have received tuition assistance for Learn & Work programs in the business, information technology, energy, construction, manufacturing, and healthcare industry sectors.

The heart of the Talent Ready Utah Center is the investment of education and employment partners. Their dedication to preparing Utahns of all ages for a sustainable and fulfilling professional future drives the center and its workforce development programs. As the center seeks innovative ways to solve current and new workforce challenges, it will continue to bolster Utah’s economy, creating stable, prosperous opportunities for Utah families and individuals.