Pima County

Amount Appropriated?

$2.7M

FFID tracks stages 1–2 — stages 3–5 vary by agency, assistance type, and earmark structure.

Project Description

Pima County has identified this project as an equity priority, because it will enhance access to post-secondary career-technical education for low-income, minority and marginalized job seekers. The project would set up an employment center \u2013 offering career planning, access to financial assistance and case management \u2013 co-located adjacent to Pima Community College Downtown Campus.\nThe project will benefit all eligible job seekers, particularly those with mobility challenges, by eliminating the need for students to travel from the college campus where registration, education and training take place, to the One-Stop Center where the career resources, unemployment benefits and Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act program intake occur. Connecting lower-skilled, low income individuals to higher skills is an economic, as well as equity, priority because the southern Arizona region\u2019s post-pandemic economic recovery depends on increased labor-market participation and skilled workforce development. The Downtown Campus is home to PCC\u2019s Applied Technology Center of Excellence, leading students to promising careers in manufacturing, automotive technology and aircraft repair, as well as PCC Adult Basic Education for College and Career, assisting adults to obtain a high-school equivalency diploma.\nAccording to the University of Arizona Eller College\u2019s MAP Dashboard, Tucson lags the nation, the state, and most other Arizona metropolitan areas in adding back the jobs that were lost during the pandemic.