E3 Alliance convened the Central Texas community for regional dialogues around education and employment in the region during the spring of 2019. Parents, students, educators, business people, policymakers, community members, and other stakeholders addressed the barriers limiting student success beyond high school. Participants explored the important connection between education and pathways to career success.

The excitement and enthusiasm around these conversations were very encouraging. Feedback will help E3 develop strategies aimed at supporting more students in their journey to and through postsecondary education, and in connecting them to living-wage careers in the region. Our main goals are to support a culture of college and career success in Central Texas, to develop regional change agents, and to inform the work we do at E3 in critical ways. For more information, contact info@E3Alliance.org.

Download our 2019 Community Conversations Report.

DO-IT-YOURSELF CONVERSATION KIT
Are you ready to host your own Community Conversation around postsecondary degree completion and career success in Central Texas? We know that the only way to meet our regional and statewide education goals is if we unite around the same message that in today’s world a postsecondary credential is necessary to learn a living wage. With all of us speaking to friends, neighbors and co-workers about trends in our region and the reality of our current student population, we can better support all students as they pursue success after high school. Hosting a conversation is simple! Download these resources.

Central Texas Resources
Our community consists of many organizations, programs and initiatives that are dedicated to improving education and career outcomes. Here is a sampling of some of the resources available online.
High-Skill, High-Growth Jobs in the Capital Area – booklet of careers in high demand today and into the future, including information on salary and qualifications required.

Foundation Communities College Hub – service that provides prospective and current college students help in their journey towards a degree or workforce certificate, including coaching, guidance for financial aid applications, and matching savings for tuition.

Free Minds – a program of Foundation Communities for adults living on low to moderate incomes that provides a free, year-long college course in the humanities that helps students develop the skills of close reading, critical thinking, and communication, all while earning six credit hours from Austin Community College.

Texas OnCourse – an online resource for parents and students planning for life after high school, including career exploration, connecting skills to career goals, interest survey quiz, personal graduation planner, parent guide for talking with student and counselor, real-life career stories, educational pathways, and much more.

When I Grow Up – career exploration curricula that serve students, teachers, parents and the community of those in grades Pre-Kindergarten through 12th grades.

Career Planning – an online resource of industry and occupational career profiles that contain information on growth projections, salary expectations, and education/skill requirements.

Targeting Occupations and Industries – an online resource that provides industry and occupational trends and identifies: In-Demand Industries, In-Demand Occupations and Targeted Occupations.

Breakthrough Central Texas – an organization that provides out-of-school learning and academic case management from middle school through college to students from low-income in communities who will become first in their families to graduate from college.

Austin Partners in Education – Austin ISD focused organization that delivers innovative, volunteer-driven, academic and mentoring programs to predominantly economically disadvantaged students.

Jeremiah Program Austin – an organization that offers one of the most successful strategies for transforming families from poverty to prosperity two generations at a time, specifically preparing determined single mothers to excel in the workforce, ready their children to succeed in school, and reduce generational dependence on public assistance.

Area Higher Education Institutions
Austin Community College – nationally recognized two-year college serving Central Texas as the primary gateway to higher education and technical training.
     Start College in High School – get college and high school credits at the same time.
     Career Academies for High School Students – get head start on college with free or low-cost credits, graduate from high school with job-ready technical qualifications, or complete an associate degree.

Concordia University – liberal arts university in northwest Austin that empowers students of all backgrounds to lead lives of critical thought, compassionate action and courageous leadership.

Huston-Tillotson University – a college of liberal arts and sciences that awards undergraduates four-year degrees in business, education, the humanities, natural sciences, social sciences, science and technology, located in east Austin. Adult degree programs offered.

Southwestern University – a four-year university offering top-ranked integrated arts and sciences curriculum that incorporates the humanities, fine arts, social sciences, and natural sciences, located in Georgetown, Texas.

St. Edward’s University – an award-winning, nationally ranked, liberal arts university in Austin with 60+ undergraduate and graduate degrees. Adult degree programs offered.

Texas State University – a public research, four-year university in San Marcos, Texas, with nearly 200 bachelor’s and master’s degree options, and 14 doctoral degree programs, including applied arts, business, education, fine arts, communication, health, liberal arts, science, and engineering.

The University of Texas at Austin – a four-year public research university in Austin, Texas, with eight schools and colleges and highly ranked graduate programs, including the McCombs School of Business, Cockrell School of Engineering and School of Nursing.