Minnesota Business Leaders Gather To Discuss Dual Training Pipeline

ST. CLOUD (WJON News) -- Business leaders from across the state will be in St. Cloud on Thursday as part of an educational conference. Minnesota's Department of Labor and Industry is holding the Dual-Training Pipeline at the River's Edge Convention Center.

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Attendees will get to learn more about earn-and-learn training options, current Minnesota workforce trends, discuss workforce challenges, and more. Minnesota Dual Training Pipeline Manager Dan Solomon says the conference is beneficial for them, too:

"We are always adding new eligible occupations to our program, and so it's really important for us to hear from industry leaders what those in demand occupations are and what the skills and the competencies are for somebody to be successful in those occupations."

Solomon says they use the feedback to help create a training model for employers to use in the future. Over 70 people will be attending the conference, and CentraCare, Essentia Health, and Holdingford's Two Rivers Enterprises are on the panel of presenters.

Dual Training Pipeline works with seven industries: advanced manufacturing, agriculture, childcare, health care, information technology, transportation, and legal cannabis. Solomon says the forum is a great way for them to get the word out:

"For us, it's an opportunity to share about our program with people who maybe are new to this approach, who can walk away from it and get resources on how to create that kind of initiative at their own business. We also have an opportunity to share about grant funding from the state, the Dual Training Grant, which will help pay for some of the education costs."

Solomon says they have held the conference for over five years now, and this is their first time hosting it in St. Cloud. He says the Dual Training Pipeline is always trying new things to find the best way to get in front of people and share information about all their programs.

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