Career Connect Washington: Healthcare Sector Leader
The Washington state healthcare sector anticipates approximately 30,000 job openings for applicants with less than a Bachelor’s degree.
As the healthcare sector struggles to meet workforce needs, there is an urgent need for a comprehensive statewide resource that connects healthcare employers with workforce development programs and future applicants.
As part of its vision to guarantee WA students with multiple pathways toward economic self-sufficiency, CCW has awarded a Healthcare Sector Leader grant to the SEIU Healthcare 1199NW Multi-Employer Training and Education Fund.
This video was awarded a 2024 Bronze Telly Award: Advocacy & Causes.
What is Career Connect Washington?
Career Connect Washington (CCW) is a broad coalition of business, labor, education, and community leaders to create work-based and academic programs for young people to explore, learn, and earn money or college-level credit. These programs aim to help WA youth become career-ready and also provide resources to meet WA workforce needs: 
- Career Explore: Students (ages 5 – 30) learn how their interests can lead to different jobs in different fields.
- Career Prep: Hands-on programs (e.g., pre-apprenticeships and internships) help students (ages 13 – 30) gain professional experience toward their education or training.
- Career Launch: A focused career-connected learning program that combines paid work experiences – like apprenticeships – with classroom learning, and enabled students (ages 17-30) to receive credentials and become competitive job candidates.
CCW aims to ensure that 60% of young adults beginning in the class of 2030 will participate in a Career Launch program.
What does the Training Fund do as Healthcare Sector Leader?
The Training Fund will research and gather statewide information about existing healthcare programs, help healthcare employers identify needs and facilitate connections with workforce development opportunities, and help young adults explore healthcare education and career pathways. 
This includes facilitating resources that: (a) help students explore and access high-quality career-connected healthcare learning programs; and (b) enable industry, education, and labor partners to provide innovative healthcare education and career pathways for young people.
Through facilitation and leadership, the Healthcare Leaderwill:
- Serve as the main point of contact between state, regional CCW teams, labor, and employers
- Conduct an industry needs analysis to provide a scalable strategy for current and future healthcare workforce needs
- Support CCW goals for Career Launch, Career Prep & Career Explore programs
- Convene employers and CCW partners
- Gather qualitative data through interviews and meetings to create a shared understanding of needs, challenges, and success
- Promote CCW Career Launch programs:
- Identify partners and industry best practices to scale at the strategic state level
- Identify gaps or needs, and develop recommendations to support the healthcare sector
- Complete a strategic analysis and recommendation to devise a healthcare sectoral strategy that employers can utilize to recruit and retain skilled talent
- Facilitate continuous development of the healthcare sectoral strategy to support increasing the number of participating employers, strengthening outcomes of a dynamic labor market, and supporting the equity and impact of career-connected learning within the healthcare sector
Current Programs
CCW Sector Intermediary Accelerator Grants for 2024/2025
Jefferson Healthcare Accelerator: Care Team Specialist and Surgical Technologist
The Training Fund has been awarded a CCW Sector Intermediary 2024/2025 Accelerator Grant to support Jefferson Healthcare in Port Townsend. Jefferson Healthcare will collaborate with the Training Fund to promote, recruit, interview, and hire trainees for the first round of both the Care Team Specialist and Surgical Technologist programs.
The first cohort of Care Team Specialists graduated on Feb 6, 2025 in Port Townsend.
“During the shadowing I was able to sit with a trainer and see how they do the job and then do the job myself and learn how to actually work with patients,”explains Harley Flockoi, graduate of the program.
“It’s just one of those jobs where I actually will feel good. They definitely helped me find my voice and have guided me to become better through this program,” expresses Logan Guzman, graduate of the program.
Graduate, Sierra Spencer shares, “I went from knowing nothing and just having this insane drive, to now I understand the process of all of it and that drive is getting stronger and stronger. It earned me the title of Care Teams Specialist Two, I don’t think that I would have been able to reach that as quickly as I did.”
College in High School Apprenticeships
The College in High School apprenticeship is a Career Connect Washington (CCW) Career Launch program that supports career-connected learning.
As CCW’s Healthcare Sector Intermediary, we aim to increase opportunities and programming for youth through Career Launch, Career Prep, and Career Explorer program partnerships.
College in High School apprenticeships are Career Launch programs. Apprenticeships are earn-as-you-learn programs.
The Pharmacy Technician program – in partnership with Sno-Isle TECH Skills Center – is the first of its kind in WA state that also provides participants with college credit and industry credentials.
Events
Upcoming Events:
CCW Healthcare Sector Intermediary Roundtable in Q1 2025
Hosted in partnership with OESD114, WA Allied Health Center of Excellence, WA Sound STEM Network
March 20th
Sequim, WA
If you would like to participate or attend a roundtable please contact Amy Barto, CCW Healthcare Sector Leader Project Manager, directly at .
Past Events:
September 26th, 2024 round table: “Aligning Education and Industry: Addressing Healthcare Workforce Shortages and Preparing for Future Labor Market Needs.”
The CCW Healthcare Sector Intermediary Roundtable Event partnering with ESD123 and The WA Center of Excellence, was a great success. We had a panel of subject matter experts comprised of an employer, skill center executive, and two college deans. There was a break out discussion with our presenting team, panel, and 30 attendees. Partners were connecting, wanted to listen to one another and discuss their common goals(and roadblocks), and started talking about solves, which was incredibly impactful. These in person collaborations are paramount to moving this work forward. The excitement of attendees and new momentum was palpable in the room. We will continue to grow and shape these meetings regionally.
Narielle’s Success Story: From High School to NA-C
Watch Narielle’s story!
This video was awarded a 2024 Bronze Telly Award: Recruitment
Further Resources
Learn more about how your organization can benefit!
Contact Healthcare Sector Leader Project Manager Amy Barto (425-902-8601) to find out how we can help your organization review its workforce needs.
