OTAN News

Learning More About Apprenticeships

Image by Brian Odwar from Pixabay

Last week was the 6th anniversary of National Apprenticeship Week, a nationwide celebration that gives businesses, communities, and educators the opportunity to showcase their apprenticeship programs and apprentices while providing valuable information to career seekers. Even though the week has come and gone, adult education agencies need to continually educate community members and stakeholders about apprenticeship programs that are offered and help communities understand the power of apprenticeships as a pathway to training, certification, and employment for adults.

Apprenticeships are an important component of WIOA, but many adult educators are not familiar with this valuable option for our students. National Apprenticeship Week (and beyond) is a great opportunity to learn more about apprenticeships so we can provide adult education students with information about pursuing this option as a means to bettering their lives.

• The apprenticeship.gov website is maintained by the US Department of Labor, and it is a good starting point for a wide range of information about apprenticeships. There is an Apprenticeship Finder for job seekers, Resources that include what apprenticeships look like in different industries, and information about apprenticeships for Educators and Employers (as well as information about how schools and businesses can partner to create apprenticeship programs).

• Visit the California Apprenticeship Week page for some apprenticeship resources from around the state.

• The California Adult Education Program website has a section on apprenticeships. There are links to the California Apprenticeship Initiative Hub and the Division of Apprenticeship Standards website maintained by the State of California Department of Industrial Relations.

• Learn about pre-apprenticeship and apprenticeship programs in your consortium. Here are some examples from the State Center Adult Education Consortium, Contra Costa County Adult Education Consortium, and Inland Adult Education Consortium.

Now is the time to learn more apprenticeships for ourselves and the benefit of our students!

Article: Apprenticeship Is Back—And It's About Time from Forbes
Article: Back to virtual apprenticeships? from The Hill