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August 26, 2015
Vol. 1, Issue 21
Board of Trustees

Chairman of the Board
Anna U. Bustamante
District 3

Vice Chair
Dr. Yvonne Katz
District 7

Secretary
Joe Alderete, Jr.
District 1

Asst. Secretary
Clint Kingsbery
District 8

Denver McClendon
District 2

Marcelo S. Casillas
District 4

Roberto Zarate
District 5

Dr. Gene Sprague
District 6

James Rindfuss
District 9

Sami C. Adames
Student Trustee

Chancellor

Dr. Bruce Leslie
Alamo Colleges

Alamo Colleges, SA Chamber To Lead SA-TEC Strategic Workforce Initiative 
The Alamo Colleges and the San Antonio Chamber of Commerce will lead
the newly created SA-TEC workforce initiative.
Mayor Ivy Taylor and Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff recently announced that the Alamo Colleges and the San Antonio Chamber of Commerce will co-lead the community-wide effort to oversee, align and execute key strategic initiatives that impact the workforce delivery system in San Antonio. The San Antonio - Talent for Economic Competitiveness (SA-TEC) initiative has been established to manage this effort. SA-TEC is an alignment and integration model developed from best practices and proven industry-led efforts. This industry-led pathways system will provide a comprehensive approach to workforce oversight, coordination and delivery.

The SA-TEC effort will be directed by a board composed of corporate leaders, chaired by Peter J. Holt, senior vice president, HOLT CAT. The board will engage, focus and nurture collaborations among educators, eommunity-based organizations and employers. Its charge will be to use this collective impact model to improve the availability of skills employers need, increase employment and family income and provide a competitive workforce that will encourage the expansion of local companies and attract new industries to San Antonio.

Members of the SA-TEC board are: Bryan Scott, Boeing; David Crouch, Toyota Motor Manufacturing, Texas, Inc.; Eddie Aldrete, IBC Bank; Gary Joeris, Joeris General Contractors; Alvin Loewenberg, Morningside Ministries; Joe Robles, retired CEO, USAA; Geoff Crabtree, Methodist Healthcare; John Dewey, San Antonio Manufacturers Association; Kate Rogers, H-E-B; Tom Cuthbert, Vistage; Eileen Lash, JPMorgan Chase Bank; and A.J. Rodriguez, Zachry Group, Inc.

The SA-TEC initiative will begin its work in August 2015 and begin a nationwide search for an executive director in the coming weeks.

Alamo Colleges' Health Professions Opportunity Grant Training Program Celebrates Graduates 
Students in the Health Profession Opportunity Grant program
train for careers in healthcare that are in high demand.

A total of 128 students recently completed the Alamo Colleges' Health Professions Opportunity Grant (HPOG) job training program, including the first 36 students from the Promise Zone to Work initiative, a partnership with the City of San Antonio. Their accomplishments were celebrated at a graduation ceremony attended by Mayor Ivy Taylor; Councilman Alan E. Warrick II; Dr. Federico Zaragoza, Alamo Colleges' vice chancellor for economic and workforce development; and other guests at St. Philip's College.

The students received career certificates in licensed vocational nursing, medical assisting, certified nurses aide/patient care technician, medical front office, computer technology and heavy equipment operator. Many of the students have been offered employment and externships with partner employers, including University Health System, Methodist Hospital, Rackspace, Baptist Health System, CVS Pharmacy and Holt Cat.

San Antonio is one of 32 cities selected as HPOG recipients. The program is funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and has provided $5 million in funding for the Alamo Colleges program, enrolling 584 students, with 342 subsequently obtaining employment. The Alamo Colleges is part of a collaborative for the HPOG program that includes the San Antonio Housing Authority, Project Quest and Goodwill Industries. A 32-partner employer roundtable advises program members on curriculum and industry trends and provides externships for HPOG students.

Authorized by the Affordable Care Act, the HPOG program provides education and training to Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) recipients and other low-income individuals for careers in the health care field that pay well and are expected to either experience labor shortages or be in high demand.
 

 

More than $2 million in grants will provide support services for
veterans and other students at Alamo Colleges - San Antonio College.

Alamo Colleges - San Antonio College Nets
$2 Million Grants

Alamo Colleges - San Antonio College (SAC) will receive more than $2 million in funding over the next five years to help low-income, first-generation-in-college and disabled students achieve degrees. A pair of U.S. Department of Education TRIO Student Support Services (SSS) grants will help SAC provide extra academic, personal and social support for motivated, under-represented students over the next five years.

Through the Veterans Achieving Learning through Opportunity and Resilience (VALOR) program grant, SAC will support 120 veteran students each academic year. Additionally, the Project R.I.S.E. (Ready, Inspired, Successful, Engaged) program grant will provide funding to assist 120 science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) and health science majors annually.

Veteran students and STEM and health sciences majors who are accepted into SAC's SSS programs will benefit from comprehensive services including: year-'round tutoring; help with selecting the right courses for their education and career goals; year-'round personal counseling for financial, academic and personal matters; help with the process of transferring to a four-year institution; and personalized assistance with financial aid, including help with finding and applying for scholarships.

SAC SSS program students will also receive assistance choosing a career and successfully adapting to the demands of college life. Programming will also provide students with opportunities to get to know one another and grow their personal support network, through events like on-campus study groups, student clubs, and visits to universities, museums, parks, and art venues.

 

The Alamo Colleges mission is: empowering our diverse communities for success. Our vision is: the Alamo Colleges will be the best in the nation in student success and performance excellence. The Alamo Colleges is one district with five community colleges serving more than 90,000 students annually from Bexar County and seven other counties in our service area. We provide an affordable, quality college education that leads to associate degrees, certificates and transfers to four-year universities. Hundreds of thousands of Bexar County residents who have come through the Alamo Colleges education programs are major contributors to the economy and culture of San Antonio.