The next two installments of our Moving Forward Together series will take an in-depth look at some exciting career opportunities in our rural communities. We will showcase two emerging, high-demand employment pathways - in Maritime and Health Care – that most people don’t even know exist.

For our February 24 episode, we will focus on the MAC Project, a statewide open-source, cross-sector welding and fabrication model framework focused on the maritime, agriculture & natural resource and construction industries. The American Welding Society projects that, nationally, 336,000 new welding professionals in a variety of occupations will be needed by 2026. To meet this need, it is imperative to develop frameworks and programming to support K12 - post-secondary pathways in underserved rural communities in our five-county region, and across Washington State.

Keynote Speaker:

Ann Avary, Director, NW Center of Excellence for Marine Manufacturing and Technology

Panel Speakers:

Cathy Le Compte, Workforce Dean, Grays Harbor College
Andrea Mirante, Executive Director, Emerald Coast Communications

More speakers to be announced soon!