BATON ROUGE, LA - Today, the Louisiana Community and Technical College System (LCTCS) hosted the Louisiana Career and Technical Education (CTE) Summit. Attendees comprised of more than 200 members of business and industry, elected officials, state and local agencies, State CTE Directors and their secondary/postsecondary counterparts.
"Industry-led partnerships in education is our path forward to meeting our state's workforce needs in infrastructure, healthcare, and manufacturing," said Dr. Brittney Baptiste Williams, State Director of CTE for LCTCS. "This Summit highlights how industry guided decision-making develops and enhances our programs and opens the door for future opportunities."
The Summit was designed for professionals in secondary and postsecondary education to network directly with employers about today and tomorrow’s workforce needs and how education can better prepare learners.
The event kicked off with a workforce panel recognizing economic development as the link between education and business & industry. The panel, facilitated by Baton Rouge Area Chamber CEO Adam Knapp, was comprised of:
- Josh Tatum, Director of Strategic Initiatives of Greater New Orleans, Inc.;
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Angie White, Chief Operating Officer of North Louisiana Economic Partnership;
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André Breaux, VP, Policy Initiatives & Governmental Affairs of One Acadiana; and
- Dr. Marjorie Taylor, Executive Director of The Orchard Foundation.
The event also offered breakout sessions from industry leaders including Apple and Boeing, highlighting how partnerships are established, maintained and benefit not only business and industry, but the community, and, most importantly, the learner.
With a lens focused on equity and diversity, Louisiana is committed to providing rigorous education and training opportunities that lead to high-wage, in-demand, and high skill occupations in order to enhance the state and local economic competitiveness and productivity for all citizens.
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