Adult Education Responds to Workforce Needs With a Focus on Rider 82

Adult Technology Training for Individuals with Limited English Proficiency

The Texas Workforce Commission is pleased to announce the award of four innovative projects that will support the mounting need of businesses to recruit and employ job candidates from Texas’ growing multilingual workforce. Projects will match Texas businesses that are facing critical skill shortages with customized work-based English as a Second Language training in high demand occupations.

• The Alamo Community College District in San Antonio will implement a bilingual occupational training program that will increase the number of qualified and skilled limited English proficient workers in production worker, certified nurses assistant, and dietetic food service supervisor occupations. Employers that will provide job shadowing positions, on-the-job training, internships, and employment opportunities include Reyes Automotive Group, Curtis Maruyaso America, Toytotesu Texas, Vutex, Inc., Trisun Care Center, Air Force Villages 1 and 2, Golden Manor Jewish Home for the Aged, University Hospital, and Nix Hospital.
• The San Jacinto Community College District will partner with Etech, Inc., a global business process outsourcing business, to train bilingual customer service representatives with the skills necessary to fill bilingual customer service positions at the company’s recently selected Pasadena site. The project will target individuals with a sound command of written and spoken Spanish, who can provide quality customer service in Spanish but who require the English language development necessary to effectively navigate English language data entry systems and provide customer service in English to client family members who may not be Spanish speakers. This project will focus on the Gulf Coast Workforce Area service area.
• The Harris County Department of Education Adult Education Department will implement a bilingual occupational training program that will provide LEP workers with employment opportunities in the petrochemical construction industry. Business partners include Shell Oil, Lyondell-Citgo Refining, Becon Construction Company, Ref Chem, Zachary Construction, and Marek Brothers Systems. Business associations and education providers that provide specific program implementation components include the Houston Business Roundtable, National Center for Construction Education and Research, Associated Builders and Contractors, The Houston Area Safety Council, Literacy Advance of Houston, and San Jacinto College Central Campus.
• WorkSource - Greater Austin Area Workforce Board will partner with Seton Family of Hospitals, St. David’s Healthcare, Austin Capital Area Dental Society and Austin Community College to provide vocational ESL, language instructional support and occupational training for Administrative Assistant and Dental Assistant occupations in the Capital and Rural Capital workforce areas. Training will address increasing local business demand for bilingual staff in demand occupations.

Texas is rapidly becoming more diverse, and the state’s future workforce requires adult education solutions that lead with innovative instructional approaches and respond to rapidly evolving business climates. For more information on these projects, contact Texas Workforce Commission at
512-936-0425.