Hire Frequency Chicago Cook Workforce Partnership

Host George Wright, CEO of The Chicago Cook Workforce Partnership, is joined by City Colleges of Chicago Chancellor Juan Salgado, as they discuss their intentional partnership to connect the 60,000+ City Colleges students with career opportunities. Discover how this collaboration between the workforce and education systems aims to provide upward mobility and equity for Chicago's students. You'll also hear about the importance of higher education in gaining skills and stability in the job market, and the critical role of partnerships between workforce development and educational institutions in bridging the gap between students and meaningful career paths.

Join host George Wright, Chief Executive Officer of the Chicago Cook Workforce Partnership, as he discusses the organization's new "Level Up Your Career" and "Power Up Your Business" campaign. Joining the conversation are Vanessa Lopez Jackson, a leader at The Lemon Ad Stand creative agency which developed the gaming-themed campaign aimed at promoting the region's ten American Job Centers. Also featured are Lisa Maentz and Clelia Ferro, leaders at AJCs in suburban Cook County, who share how the centers provide services for career seekers and employers, evolve to meet changing needs, and foster ongoing relationships with local businesses. Tune in to learn how this collaborative effort makes workforce development accessible through innovative marketing and vital community partnerships to ensure the region’s public workforce system is no longer the area’s “best kept secret.” Visit https://levelupajc.org/ to learn more.

Tune in for a conversation with George Wright, as he reflects on his first 90 days as CEO of the Chicago Cook Workforce Partnership (The Partnership). George reveals his top goals for The Partnership and discusses the moments that have stood out to him in his first 90 days as CEO. He also shares his personal journey and how the timeless values he learned from his parents inform his leadership approach. 

In Cook County more than 520,000 Chicagoland residents report having a disability. The Partnership and Cook County have launched the Cook County Career Pathways Navigator program to support individuals with disabilities and connect them with organizations to help them with their career path. In this episode, we observe Disability Pride Month with a workforce professional, an employer, and an employee with a disability. Visit https://www.scalelit.org/jobseeker to learn more about Cook County Career Pathways Navigator or reach a Career Coach at an American Job Center by calling 800-720-2515

Each April, the U.S. Department of Justice's Office of Justice Programs celebrates Second Chance Month, which aims to inform and highlight the opportunities for state, local, and tribal governments and community-based service providers to build meaningful second chances for our returning community members. 

In this two-part episode, host Avik Das, Executive Director of the Cook County Justice Advisory Council, is joined by a panel of guests to discuss how Cook County is helping men and women return home after release as well as the expansion of the Road Home program, which  is designed to help formerly incarcerated people find employment and other resources.

The guests in this episode are Claudia Regalado-Cattouse, The Partnership’s Director of Community Innovations and Impact, Nicholas Crayton, a returned Community Member who served 24 years at the Illinois Department of Corrections (IDOC), and Gia Davis, a Second Chance Employer. 

Each April, the U.S. Department of Justice's Office of Justice Programs celebrates Second Chance Month, which aims to inform and highlight the opportunities for state, local, and tribal governments and community-based service providers to build meaningful second chances for our returning community members. 

In this two-part episode, host Avik Das, Executive Director of the Cook County Justice Advisory Council, is joined by a panel of guests to discuss how Cook County is helping men and women return home after release as well as the expansion of the Road Home program, which  is designed to help formerly incarcerated people find employment and other resources.

The guests in this episode are Claudia Regalado-Cattouse, The Partnership’s Director of Community Innovations and Impact, Nicholas Crayton, a returned Community Member who served 24 years at the Illinois Department of Corrections (IDOC), and Gia Davis, a Second Chance Employer.