New York, N.Y. (February 2, 2023) – Guttman Community College is excited to announce that JobsFirstNYC provided the College with a $10,000 planning and design grant to support the College’s work with the Healthcare Sector Network. Guttman College and JobsFirstNYC aim to strengthen employer-driven training to increase young adults’ readiness for employment upon program completion. This partnership will ensure that Guttman’s workforce development opportunities are aligned with up-to-date industry knowledge and expectations, increasing access to higher-quality jobs requiring less than a four-year college degree.
“This is a critical partnership as the College leans into the Health Sciences with a Health Information Technology major and Public Health track being currently developed,” said Guttman President Larry Johnson.
Such work is particularly critical in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has accelerated the economic vulnerability of underserved people and communities of color in New York City. Through this planning and design grant, Guttman College and its partners—including St. Nicks Alliance, Phipps Neighborhood, PHI and Stanley M. Isaacs Neighborhood Center, STRIVE New York, Cypress Hill Local Development Corporation, and JobsFirstNYC—will take a collaborative approach to transform how multiple systems share information and resources to prepare jobseekers for the future economy.
“The opportunity to work with this network provides our faculty with current data and on the ground feedback on industry trends,” said Provost Nicola Blake.
During the grant year, Guttman and its partners will engage in an ambitious process to assess current industry opportunities, develop new linkages between organizations and programs and create a plan for the Healthcare Sector Network to activate services.
JobsFirstNYC creates and advances solutions that break down barriers and transform the systems supporting young adults and their communities in the pursuit of economic opportunities and includes the Healthcare Sector Network as part of a broader strategy to increase workforce development capacity. In partnership with leading sector training programs and community colleges, JobsFirstNYC will facilitate the development of sectoral employment networks (Networks) made up of high-performing education and workforce training providers, employers and employer intermediaries, and other key stakeholders to organize and expand high quality skills training. The Networks will develop collective mechanisms to negotiate with employers, improve program design and customized skills training to meet talent needs, leverage knowledge and resources, and increase inclusivity and access to higher-quality jobs.
Stella and Charles Guttman Community College is CUNY’s first new community college in more than forty years. Reimagining what community college can be, Guttman opened its doors in Manhattan in August 2012 to create a research-based, innovative model focused on moving students efficiently toward graduation. Offering associate degree programs in a nurturing environment, the College’s three-year graduation rate consistently surpasses the national average, and most graduates transfer to senior colleges. Guttman is federally designated as a Hispanic-serving institution and minority-serving institution with more than 85% of the student population identifying as Latine or Black/African American. The College was named the best community college in America in 2020 and the top community college in New York State for 2020, 2021 and 2022 by Niche.com and other ranking agencies.
