Elizabeth part of $2 million health careers grant
Seven rural and urban school districts partner with health care organizations and nonprofits to help students pursue careers in health care
DENVER, Colo. (Oct. 27, 2021) — Elizabeth School District was announced Oct. 25 as part of a $2 million grant award from ZOMALAB to open doors to health care careers through the Colorado Health Careers Collaborative.
The SyncUp Colorado Workforce Design Challenge focuses on creating opportunities for young Coloradans to build meaningful careers.
Applicants answered the central question: “How might we accelerate education-to-employment partnerships that support Coloradans ages 12-24 to make informed choices and obtain job relevant skills to build quality careers?”
The Colorado Health Careers Collaborative will co-create health-career pathways for students around the 10 fastest-growing health occupations including postsecondary certification, career navigation, and job shadow experiences.
It is led by Arapahoe Community College and the Community College of Denver and brings together three of Colorado’s largest health employers – Centura Health, HealthOne, and DaVita, as well as Beyond Campus Innovations, CollegeInvest Colorado, the Arapahoe/Douglas Workforce Center, and the Elizabeth, Cherry Creek, Denver, Elbert, Englewood, Kiowa, and Littleton School Districts.
The six winning partnerships collectively bring modern apprenticeships and hybrid college approaches to serve broad geographies and beneficiaries statewide and represent solutions across fast-growing industries in Colorado including health care and construction.
SyncUp Colorado received more than 130 applications across 40 high-growth industries representing more than 200 Colorado-based organizations with early- and mid-stage partnership solutions. Applicants had opportunities to win between $350,000 and $2 million per partnership application.
Read more about the SyncUp Colorado Workforce Design Challenge, the winners, and the finalists at www.syncupcolorado.org.
ZOMALAB funded the effort and partnered with the Colorado Governor’s Office, Colorado Succeeds, Colorado Thrives, SemperVirens, Skillful a Markle initiative, and Strada Education Network to develop the SyncUp Colorado challenge. ZOMALAB focuses on advancing the areas of early childhood development, workforce, community economic development, and water and energy to help support resilient, thriving communities that will endure for future generations.