Episode 205: On the Road in Sioux City Part 1 – Thompson Solutions
Mission: Employable
This week, the hosts of the Mission: Employable podcast hit the road for more conversations about Iowa’s workforce! Ben Oldach and Kathy Leggett head out for a multi part series highlighting different employers and programs in Sioux City, IA! The first episode features Jennifer Stanwick-Klimek, Manager of Learning and Development at Thompson Solutions. With more openings than employees to fill them, Stanwick-Klimek shares how their internship program is helping fill electrical and mechanical contractor roles. The company is all in, seeing this not just as a solution for the short term, but a...
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Spring Cleaning
Mission: Employable
Ben is here with a quick update about some changes to the podcast schedule in March and April.
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Episode 204 – Disability Employment with the Harkin Institute
Mission: Employable
The Harkin Institute, a non-partisan think tank established at Drake University, is a leader in developing disability workforce policy. Daniel Van Sant, Director of Disability Policy, joins the podcast to talk about an international summit the institute held in Washington D.C. and how some of the topics of discussion coming from that summit can help Iowa businesses lead the way on hiring Iowans with disabilities.
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Episode 203 – Ironworker Apprenticeship Builds More Than Just Buildings
Mission: Employable
Des Moines’ Ironworkers Union is hard at work across the metro building the structures that will eventually turn into the buildings where we live, work, and hang out. However, they’re also using an apprenticeship program to build lifelong careers from the ground up. Ironworkers local 67 Apprenticeship and Training Coordinator Ed Bleimehl drops by the podcast to talk about how his apprentices develop throughout the program, and how some of their experiences can help other industries that might just be starting an apprenticeship program of their own.
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Episode 202 - Urban Farming Teaches Employability Skills
Mission: Employable
The YSS Rooftop Gardens program is producing thousands of heads of lettuce, but its' more important export is the employability skills young adults need to change their lives. Started in 2024, the garden employs several groups of at-risk youth to grow hydroponic romaine lettuce which is then sold at farmers markets and select Hy-Vee stores. Hear from program founder Samanthya Marlatt as she disccuses how they use a combination of real world experience and classroom learning to teach these young adults about employability, and find out how they've already seen results after students...
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Episode 201 - A New Healthcare Grant for Employers
Mission: Employable
A New healthcare grant designed to help employers develop or expand their earn and learn programs is open for applications! Kathy Leggett, title, sits across the table with Mission: Employable podcast host, Ben Oldach, to discuss the ins and outs of the grant. Who can apply? How much money is available? And how can earn and learn programs help employers grow their staff for years to come? Get answers to these and more along with information about applying to the new healthcare grant in this episode.
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Episode 200 - A New Deputy in Town
Mission: Employable
Mission Employable celebrates its 200th episode with a brand-new face! Newly hired Iowa Workforce Development Deputy Director Georgia Van Gundy joins the pod to introduce herself to the state and discuss what her past experiences will bring to the department. Find out why the former Executive Director of the Iowa Business Council tells us the unemployment rate isn’t the only number we should be paying attention to.
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Episode 199 – Helping English Language Learners Jumpstart their Career
Mission: Employable
Learning English can be a challenge, but learning career specific terminology and slang can be even more challenging. Des Moines Area Community College (DMACC) is here to help solve some of those problems with its Jumpstart program. Michelle Schott, Integrated Education and Training Coordinator at DMACC, joins the Mission: Employable podcast and shares about the program that is helping English language learners talk the talk in their career fields. Find out how employers can use the program to help set their staff up for success and how Jumpstart works to specialize language learning for...
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Episode 198 - The Iowa Office of Apprenticeship
Mission: Employable
Iowa Workforce Development has been a champion for Registered Apprenticeship Programs for years now, but now IWD will be even more involved in how these programs operate across the state. Kolby Knupp, Program Manager at the Iowa Office of Apprenticeship joins the podcast to talk about how the state is taking over Registered Apprenticeships from the Federal Department of Labor, and what that means for employers and future apprentices in Iowa.
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Ep. 197 – Iowa Blueprint for Change
Mission: Employable
Grant funding is helping the push for economic equality in Iowa. Iowa Blueprint for Change is a federally funded program that Iowa is using to help workers who are disabled find Competitive Integrated Employment (CIE). Brandy McOmber, Deputy Division Administrator for Iowa’s Vocational Rehabilitation, and Ashley Banes, Project Director at Iowa Blueprint for Change, join the Mission: Employable podcast to discuss how CIE helps Iowans who are disabled find equal benefits and wages, and how the grant is affecting change in the state.
info_outlineOn average, Iowans are spending less time unemployed than ever before in our state’s history. IWD Director Beth Townsend has returned from Washington D.C. where she testified before a House subcommittee on the success Iowa has had helping find unemployed Iowans a new career. On this episode of Mission: Employable, find out how individualized career coaches are helping Iowans earlier than ever in the unemployment process, and why the U.S. House of Representatives want to know more about it.