Co-hosts Paul Saldaña and Chris “Tejano Man” Tristan are joined by Austin Community College Trustee Dr. Manuel Gonzalez and Barb Clapp, CEO Dwyer Workforce Development. 

Dr. Gonzalez was first appointed as Trustee for Place 5 in April 2022.  And was subsequently reelected for a full term later that year. 

Dr. Gonzalez serves as Regional Director for Western Governors University (WGU), a nonprofit, online university established in 1997 by 19 U.S. governors to expand access to higher education across the nation. As Regional Director, Dr. Gonzalez leads strategic initiatives and education partnership efforts in the South Region which includes Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico. Through this work, Dr. Gonzalez expands access to higher education and builds pathways to careers in the high-demand, high-need workforce fields of education, nursing/healthcare, IT, and business.

Barb Clapp joined Dwyer Workforce Development as the CEO in 2021. She was chosen to transition Dwyer Workforce Development as a new venture from concept to a full-scale, national workforce development organization. In her role, she leads nonprofit program development, operations, strategic partnerships, marketing tactics, and board development while leveraging past entrepreneurial and nonprofit success to develop an immediate and sustainable market presence.

We have a great discussion regarding Texas’ ongoing population growth, the need for healthcare services and a workforce to meet the increasing demand. 

Last year Latinos officially became the largest demographic in Texas, representing now over 40% of ALL TEJANOS in Texas. In Texas more than 5.4 million children attend public schools with Latinos students representing nearly 53% of this population. Nearly 61% of Texas students are considered economically disadvantaged. 

There’s also a growing senior demographic that further compounds the need for healthcare services across a state that is already facing nursing challenges. 

A critical component of the solution here is engaging traditionally underserved communities and providing not just jobs, but training to build life-changing careers. 

We dive into Latino higher education data, challenges regarding the successful matriculation of Latino students into higher education, and what are we doing to ensure Latinos and underserved communities and students have access to equitable educational opportunities and successful life long career paths. 

We discuss a great partnership between Austin Community College District (ACC) and Dwyer Workforce Development (DWD) to train and skill-up more nurses and help close the healthcare workforce gap in Central Texas. (https://dwyerworkforcedev.org)

HABLA y VOTA is co-produced by Paul Saldaña and Chris Tristan every Sunday at 9am as we discuss Latino community affairs, politics, and the importance of our power, voices and votes with local community leaders, elected/appointed officials, and guests. 

Listen on ⁠https://hottejano.com⁠ or download the HOTTEJANO app.