Registered Apprenticeship is raising incomes and creating opportunity for hundreds of Rhode Islanders while giving employers access to the skilled workforce they need to drive our economy forward.
Please join us to celebrate our work together that makes Apprenticeship work for Rhode Island and to honor outstanding partners making a big impact through Registered Apprenticeship.
Rhode Island Department of Human Services (RI DHS) & RI Association for the Education of Young Children (RIAEYC)
RI DHS designed, registered, and launched an early childhood educator Registered Apprenticeship Program (RAP), the first public sector RAP in the state. The RI Association for the Education of Young Children (RIAEYC) works in partnership with DHS to operate the program.
DHS and RIAEYC are significantly expanding their early childhood educator RAP to many new childcare centers, ensuring new early childhood educators are entering the workforce with increased earning power and Rhode Islanders will gain much-needed options for high quality child care. Join us in celebrating this partnership’s big impact in Rhode Island.
“DHS is proud to partner with Building Futures to help strengthen the early child care sector by giving early educators additional training, resources and tools to provide high-quality learning experiences for our state’s youngest learners. With expanded training, this critical workforce will see more competitive wages that will also help open the doors to more child care opportunities for families across the state.” – Kimberly Merolla-Brito, RI DHS Director
Rhode Island Building & Construction Trades Council
RIBCTC is a core partner of Building Futures – our pre-apprenticeship program graduates go on to placement in one of 16 trades and gain the gold standard in “earn while you learn” employment on large-scale construction sites around Rhode Island.
Since 1937 and the inception of the RA system, member unions of the RIBCTC have trained the next generation of skilled tradespeople through high quality programs, yet the RIBCTC continues to innovate – adapting new methods to expand opportunity for all while taking on industry-wide challenges through Registered Apprenticeship. For their leadership in establishing Building Futures Inside, which creates pathways to family-sustaining careers for formerly incarcerated Rhode Islanders and for their commitment to ensure every union worker knows that when it comes to substances use disorder and mental health, We’ve Got Your Back – please join us in honoring RIBCTC with this year’s Innovation in Apprenticeship award.
RI Office of the Postsecondary Commissioner
Registered Apprenticeship offers apprentices valuable postsecondary education, focused on learning new occupations. Aligning RAPs with degree programs at Institutions of Higher Education provides new pathways for Rhode Islanders to obtain to associate’s and bachelor’s degrees. These emerging practices supercharge the impact of Registered Apprenticeship.
Postsecondary Commissioner Gilkey has set the table with Building Futures and higher education partners statewide to align Registered Apprenticeship with credit attainment – increasing both the earning power of Rhode Island workers and the competitiveness of Rhode Island in attracting new employers and industries. Many Rhode Islanders need an ‘earn while you learn’ pathway to degrees and this work broadens the power of the higher education system to help. As Building Futures works with individual institutions of higher education and RAP sponsors to align specific RA programs to college credit, we are excited to partner with the Office of the Postsecondary Commissioner (OPC) to create standardized pathways system-wide for RA to lead to college degrees. Please join us in celebrating OPC’s leadership in this important body of work with the Emerging Practice in Apprenticeship award.