The White House Blog

Tomorrow, Dr. Jill Biden and Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis will embark on a three-day “Community College to Career” bus tour to highlight innovative industry initiativesthat are helping train students with the skills they need to meet area workforce needs. 

President Obama recently announced an $8 billion Community College to Career Fund, co-administered by the Department of Labor and Department of Education,which will help forge new partnerships between community colleges and businesses to train two million workers with skills that will lead directly to jobs.

During the tour, Dr. Biden and Secretary Solis will visit several community colleges to learn about model industry partnerships, but we know there are many more success stories around the country (check out the full schedule below). We want to hear from community college faculty, students, business and community leaders about how these partnerships have benefited you and your community.

Check out this video from Secretary Solis asking for community college faculty, students and industry partners to share their stories.  Got a story to share? Head over to WhiteHouse.gov/CommunityCollege/Tour to tell us about it or share your story on Twitter using the hashtag #CCtour.

Here’s the full schedule for the bus tour.

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2012

• 10:00 AM Columbus, Ohio: Dr. Biden and Secretary Solis will visit the Columbus State Community College Center for Workforce Development and hear from program participants and industry partners. 
• 1:30 PM Centerville, Ohio: Dr. Biden and Secretary Solis will tour the production line at DG Medical with workforce development partners Sinclair Community College and BioOhio. 
• 4:15 PM Cincinnati, Ohio: Dr. Biden and Secretary Solis will visit Cincinnati State Technical and Community College to hear how Labor Department funding is helping to expand the successful Health Careers Collaborative. 
• 7:30 PM Lexington, Kentucky: Dr. Biden and Secretary Solis will visit the UPS Freight facility in Lexington to meet twilight sort employees.

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 2012

• 8:15 AM Lexington, Kentucky: Dr. Biden and Secretary Solis will visit Bluegrass Community and Technical College and hear from program participants in the automotive, energy, HVAC, and bio-technology industries from across Kentucky.  This event is open press. 
• 1:45 PM Harriman, Tennessee:Dr. Biden and Secretary Solis will participate in a discussion about Roane State Community College's successful industry partnerships.
• 7:15 PM Wytheville, Virginia: Dr. Biden and Secretary Solis will visit Wytheville Community College to learn about the school’s successful training partnership with the Gatorade Blue Ridge plant.  

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2012

• 11:00 AM Thomasville, North Carolina: Vice President Biden will join Dr. Biden and Secretary Solis for their final stop of the “Community College to Career” bus tour at Davidson County Community College.