Workforce Development: Supporting our Communities through Career Pathways and the New Detroit Urban Corps Initiative

Workforce Development is often defined as programs and policies that support the training of individuals to meet future business needs and drive economic development. While this is certainly true, it encompasses far more. Workforce Development is a people-first approach focused on upskilling urban residents, current workers, returning citizens, and individuals with barriers to employment for long-term success and sustainability. My passion, coupled with my commitment to exposing communities to education, hands-on training, and career opportunities, fuels this work and ultimately builds trust in the communities we serve.

Since joining Strategic Community Partners, I have been privileged to lead our Workforce Development & Career Pathways team in creating the Detroit Urban Corps (DUC) initiative, which launches this summer. To power the DUC, our team will connect with residents in the community, hold recruitment fairs, and partner with local municipal workforce agencies and outlets. Our team will then provide hands-on job training to participants, led by field training partners, who were selected by their commitment to the community, their understanding of barriers to employment, support of our mission and vision, and their desire for local community members to fill their employment needs. So often when people talk about workforce development, they place all criteria and expectations on participants. At SCP, we believe in criteria and expectations for our employers and training partners, as well. 

During the 4-to-8-week training, participants will receive wraparound services, case management, CPR and First Aid certification, as well as OSHA 10 and 30 certifications. Our goal is to ensure participants gain stackable credentials by receiving a certification or certificate after completing training every week. Additionally, participants will learn skills for conflict resolution, financial literacy, and receive mental health support and transportation to assist with eliminating their barriers to employment. Our comprehensive approach ensures we can provide short-term and needed income for our DUC cohort, as well as long-term economic stability and mobility. 

With a collaborative approach and program structure that supports our community members’ unique needs, we are eager for the success of this initiative–our community deserves this. We invite you to follow our progress leading up to the DUC launch this summer by signing up here to learn more about and attend our upcoming community outreach and recruitment fairs.  These outreach events will be held in each of the city districts, along with Highland Park and Hamtramck, Michigan.  

For Our Community, 

Devon Buskin

Senior Director of Workforce Development & Career Pathways