Industrial Evolution in America: Building a Future-Ready Workforce

Originally aired July 28, 2024

As America reindustrializes through federal initiatives like the CHIPS Act, the Inflation Reduction Act, and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the demand for a skilled workforce has never been more urgent. Despite millions of new jobs created, the country faces a gap of nearly 3 million unfilled positions.

This panel — hosted in partnership with LightWorks at Arizona State University — explores how to align reindustrialization goals with workforce capacity, how educational pathways must evolve, and how institutions can better serve regional labor markets and all communities.

Speakers

Bill Turner, Moderator

Associate Vice President, Jobs for the Future

Bill Turner leads the integration of the Rework America Alliance at Jobs for the Future, a nonprofit focused on transforming U.S. education and workforce systems to achieve equitable economic advancement.

Robin Hammond

Chief Workforce Development Officer, EPIXC at Arizona State University

Robin Hammond leads workforce development for ASU’s Electrified Processes for Industry Without Carbon (EPIXC), selected as the Department of Energy’s 7th Clean Energy Manufacturing Innovation Institute.

Connor Harrington

CEO, Kuder

Connor Harrington is the Chief Executive Officer of Kuder, a global leader in career development and college and career readiness solutions.

Meredyth Hendricks

Associate Vice President, CareerCatalyst, ASU Learning Enterprise

Meredyth Hendricks oversees CareerCatalyst, the umbrella organization for all non-degree career education at Arizona State University’s Learning Enterprise.

Leah Palmer

Executive Director, Arizona Advanced Manufacturing Institute

Leah Palmer develops workforce implementation strategies for the manufacturing sector, connecting talent supply with competency-based training in automation, robotics, electronics, and advanced manufacturing programs.