Paving the Way for Progress and Prosperity for Our Community

Cesar Chavez said that “We cannot seek achievement for ourselves and forget about progress and prosperity for our community… Our ambitions must be broad enough to include the aspirations and needs of others, for their sakes and for our own.” 

We can accelerate pathways to higher education for our students and community through successful and meaningful business partnerships. That is why I’ve committed to strengthen Northwest Vista College’s presence in the community and embrace the opportunity to share our story with our business partners.  

On Friday, November 3, 2023, I had the distinct honor to represent Northwest Vista College and the Alamo Colleges District at the North San Antonio Chamber Economic Development Symposium. 

The panel presentation was on workforce/education, and I was one of four speakers that included the Chief Workforce Officer of greater:SATX Romanita Matta-Barrera, President & CEO of Centro San Antonio Trish DeBerry, and Executive Director of the Economic and Community Development for Bexar County David Marquez.   

During the symposium, I shared with attendees that Northwest Vista College is committed to partnerships with employers so that we have a deep understanding of their needs and can align our programs to jobs that pay family-sustaining wages. San Antonio has a robust education ecosystem yet more than 61% of our neighbors do not have a post-secondary credential. At the same time, employers are struggling to fill positions that require some education after high school.

More than ever, the need for us to align programs, curriculum, and students to local employment opportunities is critical to our ability to achieve the moonshot goal of ending intergenerational poverty through education. This alignment is also critical to the economic development and diversification of our local economy.

I look forward to sharing this story with the Texas Business Leadership Council next week, where I will also be part of a panel focused on educational alignment with workforce needs to support more of our neighbors in attaining jobs that allow them to support themselves and their families. 

Fortunately, I’m not the only one sharing the good news about how NVC impacts our community as I know many of you engage in your circles in the NVC story. Thank you for your work in community engagement. Whether you’re speaking at a parent-teacher meeting, at a chamber event, or in your community, your representation of NVC matters and impacts our enrollment, employee recruitment, and college donor support as well as employer support of our students.  Every effort we make creates opportunities for the success of our students.