By Linda Best, President and CEO, Contra Costa Council

Opportunity Junction, which offers low-income adults the job training and skills to help them support themselves and their families, has scheduled program information and application sessions on Monday, January 14, and Tuesday, January 22, at 3102 Delta Fair Boulevard, in Antioch. All sessions are free.

Opportunity Junction provides a number of free classes at its Antioch and Bay Point locations, including courses in English as a Second Language as well as Word Resume, Excel and PowerPoint Basics, plus drop-in internet access.

Catherine Bernal is program and volunteer coordinator. For more information, call (925) 776-1133 or visit www.opportunityjunction.org.

Six Richmond area nonprofit organizations, including the Contra Costa Economic Partnership's STEM Workforce Initiative, have been selected to receive a share of $1 million as a grant from Chevron as part of the company's California Partnership Program, an initiative that invests in education and economic development in California.
 
The Partnership's STEM Workforce Initiative received a $200,000 grant for its project, Deepening the Real World STEM Connection, which will help improve student achievement by providing work-based learning opportunities and science, technology, engineering and math curriculum support, and helping students transition from high school to post-secondary education, training and high-demand careers.

The grants will expand access to high-quality STEM educational opportunities, with a focus on working directly with the West Contra Costa Unified School District (WCCUSD) to improve the quality of education in local schools. In addition, the grants will help increase and sustain economic development opportunities for families in Richmond and West Contra Costa County because the entities receiving the grants offer comprehensive services that improve self-sufficiency and help small businesses create and sustain jobs, according to Chevron.
 
"Chevron is committed to boosting Richmond's economic development and improving the quality of life for local residents," said Heather Kulp, public affairs manager for Chevron's Richmond Refinery. For more information about the grant, visit Chevron Richmond's press release page here.

Education and ongoing workforce development must be the region's top priority if we are to continue to build a vibrant economic future in the East Bay. That's the central premise of the 2013 East Bay Business/Education Leadership Summit, which will be held Wednesday, February 27, from 7:15 a.m. to 4 p.m., at the Hilton Concord, 1970 Diamond Boulevard.

Keynote presenters include the morning speaker, Dr. Willard Daggett, president of the International Center for Leadership in Education, and afternoon speaker, Kish Rajan, GO-Biz director of the Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development and former Walnut Creek City Council member. Workshops and small-group discussions will round out the program.

The business and education conclave will focus on increasing the region's ability to supply skilled workers through purposeful alignment of high-school Linked Learning transformation strategies with post-secondary education and training. The event brings together leaders from business, government, labor and education to examine the critical issues that intersect education, workforce development and the economy.

The all-day conference is being presented by Chevron. Collaborative partners hosting the event include the Greater Concord Chamber of Commerce, the Contra Costa Economic Partnership, the Contra Costa Council and the East Bay Economic Development Alliance (East Bay EDA). Sponsorship opportunities are still available, and individual tickets can be purchased online. For more information, visit this page.

The California Department of Education announced on January 4 the 20 participants in California who will be the first to take part in a new state program designed to help students graduate from high school prepared to succeed in careers and college. Legislation (AB 790) by former Assemblymember Warren Furutani called for the establishment of a statewide Linked Learning pilot program. The participants selected by the state, in conjunction with outside partners, include school districts, county offices of education, and several regional consortia of education agencies. The pilot program will be used to assess how Linked Learning can be expanded to schools across the state.

The Diablo Delta Corridor Project (D2CP) Consortium is a partnership of three school districts within Contra Costa County, with Antioch Unified School District serving as the mentor for the other districts in the consortium. Mt. Diablo and Pittsburg Unified will collaborate with Antioch Unified and the Contra Costa Economic Partnership to focus on the manufacturing industry sector as well as the energy and utilities industry sector, which reflect the growing career opportunities in the region. For more information, contact April Treece.