Santa Clara County Supervisor Joe Simitian visits students in a Nursing Careers classroom at MetroEd-Silicon Valley CTE. The new Nursing Careers Program and an Electrical Vehicle Program were created through a partnership between MetroEd and the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors.
Partnership creates a win-win-win for community
November 11, 2024
Name: Joe Simitian and County of Santa Clara Board of Supervisors Partnership
Award: Partners in Educational Excellence
Santa Clara County Supervisor Joe Simitian has heard from a lot of business owners over the years who say they can’t find the talent they need to fill positions. But he’s also heard from numerous people who are looking for work.
“When I ask myself where the disconnect is, I realize we’re not always matching our vocational education and career training with the current and emerging trends in the market,” he wrote in an opinion editorial in The Mercury News.
In 2022, Simitian toured MetroED-Silicon Valley CTE classrooms in hopes of solving that gap. It was the start of a partnership between Santa Clara County and the CTE center that illustrates the crucial connection between education, business and quality of life.
Recognizing the longstanding nursing shortage and the rise in electric vehicle sales, and based on feedback from former MetroED Superintendent Alyssa Lynch, Simitian identified two CTE programs that would benefit the local economy: Nursing Careers and Electrical Vehicles.
Simitian proposed, and the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors approved, providing a one-time County grant of $250,000 to launch both programs. The new programs required two teachers, equipment for each classroom, preparing course outlines, promotion and renovating classrooms with floors, sinks, tables, chairs, technology and electrical wiring. MetroED contributed to the start-up costs by renovating the classrooms and removing old equipment.
The partnership didn’t stop there. To ensure that educational content was relevant, teachers utilized their employer advisory boards to develop curriculum. A partnership with Ford Motor provided free access to video lessons, practice exercises and personalized learning tools.
The Electrical Vehicle class encourages students to think innovatively in the areas of science, technology, engineering and math by providing hands-on experience in a critical field with the latest advancements in electric technology. The Nursing Careers Program addresses a shortage of qualified health care professionals, including nurses, by encouraging students to pursue nursing careers. Both programs prepare students for high wage, high skill careers.
“... I realize we’re not always matching our vocational education and career training with the current and emerging trends in the market.”
— Joe Simitian, from an opinion editorial in The Mercury News
Simitian has described this partnership as a win-win-win: Good for students who have marketable job skills, good for businesses that need skilled applicants, and good for community members who rely on these services.
In October 2023, the programs launched with a grand opening that invited state and local leaders and business partners from the health care and automotive industries.
Simitian also attended the grand opening and urged local and state leaders to continue to plan ahead for labor shortages by funding career programs that prepare students for the jobs of tomorrow. He also wrote an opinion editorial in The Mercury News that celebrated this partnership and MetroED’s role in workforce development.
Lynch said Simitian’s efforts have brought attention to the importance of K-12 career programs, which have lost funding in recent years even as enrollment has increased.
“This type of financial and advocacy partnership builds positive relationships between schools and local communities by involving students in projects that contribute to solutions,” Lynch said.
In 2022, Simitian toured MetroED-Silicon Valley CTE classrooms in hopes of solving the gap between employers and trained employees.
In October 2023, the programs launched with a grand opening that invited state and local leaders and business partners from the health care and automotive industries.
Recognizing the longstanding nursing shortage and the rise in electric vehicle sales, and based on feedback from former MetroED Superintendent Alyssa Lynch, Simitian identified two CTE programs that would benefit the local economy: Nursing Careers and Electrical Vehicles.