Southwest reimagines career pathways; launches Southwest Workforce Solutions Center

By Chris Caldwell

Pictured at the inaugural Southwest Workforce Solutions Center Open House and Career Fair are Southwest President Tracy D. Hall, Tennessee Board of Regents Chancellor Flora Tydings, Superintendent of Fayette County Schools Versie Hamlett and Southwest Chief Government and External Relations Officer Chuck Thomas.

History was in the making at Southwest with the launch of the Southwest Workforce Solutions Center (SWSC) April 20, 2023 as part of an open house and career fair at the Macon Cove Campus.

SWSC represents a revolutionary change for the college that will significantly impact students. No longer will the non-credit side of the college operate distinctly from for-credit programs. In blending the college’s workforce programs with associate degree programs, students will have a seamless career pathway from recruitment to completion and transfer to a four-year college.

The Center also will provide students with stackable short-term certificates and a career-tech education needed for today’s in-demand careers that will help close the skills gap for many Mid-South businesses. With Southwest’s expansive footprint of workforce programs and community and industry connections across Shelby and Fayette counties, SWSC positions the college to be “the” workforce solutions center of the Mid-South.

“Staying relevant to the needs of our students and our community is a priority at Southwest,” Southwest Tennessee Community College President Tracy D. Hall said. “Many of our students are struggling with having to pay bills and feed the family – they want to attend college but also need a job now. Providing accelerated career pathways and a responsive, in-demand career-tech education benefits our students and local and regional industries. Because of the work we do, we are confident that we are indeed, the workforce solutions center for the Memphis metro area and are in fact, the community’s college.”

(L-R): SWSC Open House and Career Fair panelists included Southwest Foundation Board Member Capt. (retired) Ed Lyons, Southwest Foundation Board President Darrell Thomas, MLGW Senior Human Resources Representative Andrew Stanley, MLGW Vice President/Chief Information Officer Lashell Vaughn, Southwest Business and Technologies Dean Dr. Charles Baker, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Senior Director Dr. Tosha Downey, Blue Oval City/ Ford Motor Company Learning and Development Manager Andy Bianco and Southwest Associate Vice President of Workforce Development Amy Shead.

The launch of SWSC kicked off with a panel discussion led by Southwest Foundation Board President Darrell Thomas, who facilitated conversations with local community partners and industry leaders that included the following: Southwest Foundation Board Member Capt. (retired) Ed Lyons, Memphis Light, Gas and Water Senior Human Resources Representative Andrew Stanley, Memphis Light, Gas and Water Vice President/ Chief Information Officer Lashell Vaughn, Southwest Business and Technologies Dean Dr. Charles Baker, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Senior Director Dr. Tosha Downey, Blue Oval City/ Ford Motor Company Learning and Development Manager Andy Bianco and Southwest Associate Vice President of Workforce Development Amy Shead.

The panelists discussed how Southwest’s alignment of career pathways and workforce opportunities would help grow the talent pool for qualified workers in high-demand fields such as automotive, business, engineering, IT, logistics and transportation management, robotics, and health care.

“Southwest is an institution that is fostering financial stability, something that is inaccessible to a vast majority in the city, by creating avenues for these students interested in a post-secondary career path with the Southwest Workforce Solutions Center,” said Downey. “This College, through this new pathway, has the people, resources, and community partners to un-tap the potential in the Mid-South.”

“Southwest continues to evolve and revolutionize itself with career pathways that our industry leaders are telling us we need,” Baker said. “We must continue providing and equipping our students with the best pathways to those in-demand professional careers.”

Funding for SWSC comes from an $800,000 grant from the Tennessee Higher Education Commission (THEC) and a $550,000 Reimagining the Community College Experience grant from the Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR) to provide students with extensive career exploration, career advising and credential attainment.

The three-hour inaugural event also included tours of the Fulton Building, Southwest’s state-of-the-art technologies facility, and Southwest Express, the College’s new mobile career exploration labs with simulation learning stations; an expo featuring Southwest’s technologies programs across seven of its locations in Shelby and Fayette counties; National Signing Day for Career-Tech students, a celebratory gathering for students who signed letters of intent to pursue CTE programs; and a community career fair with area businesses and companies.

(L-R): Graduates from Millington High School sign letters of intent to commit to a career-tech education during National Signing Day for Career-Tech Students at the SWSC Open House and Career Fair.

For more information about the SWSC, contact Amy Shead at ashead@southwest.tn.edu.

To view more photos from the SWSC Open House and Career Fair, go to:
https://www.flickr.com/gp/southwesttncommunitycollege/E2Sk4CQrsV

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Southwest reimagines career pathways; launches Southwest Workforce Solutions Center

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