Oakland Partnership Green Academy Workforce Initiative

Initiated by local green building employers’ workforce needs, the East Bay Green Academy is joint
initiative of the Oakland Partnership's Green Tech Cluster and the East Bay Green Corridor Partnership.
In order to address local employers' green workforce needs, the Green Academy has brought together
Alameda & Contra Costa County’s workforce training providers and educational institutions to align their green tech training programs, resources, and curriculum to meet employer demand.

The virtual “Green Academy” has already provided opportunities for collaboration across institutions in the creation of new curriculum and certificate programs and offers an opportunity for participants to engage in joint marketing, policy advocacy, and outreach to students and employers.

Including Peralta Community Colleges, Cal State East Bay, UC Berkeley, the Youth Employment Partnership, the Ella Baker Center, Alameda County Workforce Investment Board, Peralta Services Corporation, PG&E, and many other local trade associations, non-profit organizations, and workforce training providers, the group has developed a joint

proposal to create a Green Energy Pathways Program which takes a collaborative approach to recruiting, educating, training, and placing students in green energy jobs in both the public and private sectors.

Starting with K-12 education and going all the way through to adult education & professional training, the Green Energy Pathways program will give participants a clear sense of career choices in the green economy.

GREEN ENERGY PATHWAYS

The Green Academy has established a Steering Committee to build consensus around the long-range strategic goals of the East Bay’s Green Energy Career Pathways program, coordinate and inform a local partner network, and develop concurrent shorter term goals and job-specific training programs to meet green energy employer demand.

Key activities will include:

Working with employer groups to identify the labor market demand and quantify local job openings, internships, mentorships, and apprenticeships.

Building and articulating appropriate career pathways for entry-level workers.

Coordinating local training & educational access points.

Utilizing the East Bay’s existing public workforce system to inform, recruit, and assess job seekers and career changers for entry-level and advanced level careers in the green energy industry.

Creating and sustaining multi-level training and education opportunities via public/private partnerships, new grant development, leveraging of public funding, and program realignment.

Communicating the education and training offerings to local employers, job seekers, and other relevant education or workforce system providers.