Last week, Brandon and I attended the ACTE Work-Based Learning conference in Salt Lake City, Utah. And not only did we attend, we also exhibited, sponsored the Friday lunch, and also presented the Seamless Work-Based Learning Professional of the Year Award.

The event was fantastic! There were close to 400 WBL professionals there when they expected closer to 200. Next year’s event is expected to be even larger, with the increased space to accommodate.

As a sponsor of the Friday lunch, I was afforded the opportunity to address the group. I’d like to share what I said to underscore the importance of these great people.

“I’ve been doing work on employer engagement for a long time, close to 25 years, and I have never in my life seen a gathering of work-based learning professionals like I see here today. This is historic and important, and I’d like to recognize ACTE, in particular Kelli Diemer, Laura DiNardo, and Michael Connet; the board; and the conference committee in particular for the tremendous job they’re doing in giving us a platform to learn and connect.

So, as you know, we are a sponsor, and I’d like to talk about why we decided to support this group with the award and with our sponsorship.

Like I said, I’ve been working on employer engagement for a long time. We do have a work-based learning management platform called Seamless WBL that grew out of that experience. Of course, I want people to know about it and take a look. But the reason for our support for this group goes a lot deeper.

We are at an inflection point in this country. Everyone in this room knows that we have an engagement and preparation problem on the education side. That’s not new. What’s new is the workforce challenge facing employers. The Great Resignation has hit them hard, and I imagine you all are already getting a lot more interest from new partners. More and more, they’re realizing how much they need us.

I have been saying for a while that the people who can connect schools to their communities – you all – will soon be some of the most important people in the room. You have been under-resourced, and you have been under-supported. But, I think we’re finally at the point where that’s going to change, because employers are going to start demanding it.

We’re supporting this group because we want to help make sure you have the resources you need to do your work – tools like Seamless, but also opportunities like this conference, and this association, to connect and learn from one another. The work you’re doing is incredibly important, and we’re grateful for the chance to help you as you serve our schools, our employers, and most importantly, our students.

Thank you.”

Thanks to everyone who attended this historic event, and in particular, thanks to our partners at YouScience who joined us there and to everyone who stopped by to learn more about how our tools and resources can help them do their work. I hope everyone will consider joining the WBL group and attending next year’s event – it’s going to be amazing!

Brett Pawlowski is Executive Vice President of the National Center for College and Career (NC3T) (www.nc3t.com). NC3T provides planning, coaching, technical assistance, and tools. These strategies help community-based leadership teams plan and implement their college-career pathway systems and strengthen employer connections with education.