All things apprenticeship in recognition and celebration of National Apprenticeship Week

Megan Wagner and Vicki Thompson from Thomas P. Miller and Associates, a national workforce and economic development consulting firm who just this year, was recognized by the United States Department of Labor as Apprenticeship Ambassadors joins Enterprise Radio.Listen to host Eric Dye & guests Megan Wagner and Vicki Thompson discuss the following:* Can you please start by telling us about (Thomas P. Miller and Associates) TPMA.* What is Apprenticeship Week and why should industries and the labor market in general pay attention to it?* Thomas P. Miller and Associates or TPMA is an Apprentice Ambassador. What does that mean and what does it entail?* Why are apprenticeships in the U.S. less common than they are in other countries? Should there be an effort to create more apprenticeships in the US?* What are the other current initiatives TPMA is currently undertaking?Megan Wagner serves as TPMA's Director of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Business Partnerships, advising leadership on equitable practices and building relationships with a shared sense of purpose. Megan specializes in employer and partner engagement with an emphasis on guiding equitable employment practices. She has been actively involved in projects focused on the knowledge of justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion (JEDI) principles and practices supporting the businesses and associations across the country. Megan is an Apprenticeship Ambassador to support Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf’s PA Smart Apprenticeship initiative to increase registered apprenticeship programs throughout the state’s Northwest Region. Because of her work with PA Smart, Megan was invited to facilitate a training for the Greater Philadelphia Healthcare Partnership to support their Early Childhood Education program as an expert on registered apprenticeships, diversity, inclusion, and supporting underrepresented populations. Megan’s recent work includes design of a Diversity Playbook for the Manufacturing Institute, Equity Indicators & Gap Analysis for the City of Bozeman, MT, and workforce projects in Ohio’s Crawford, Richland, and Lake counties. She has been actively involved in executive leadership for the Mahoning Valley Manufacturer’s Coalition and leads implementation strategy for the Greater Oh-Penn Manufacturing Network.Vicki Thompson specializes in national, state, and regional workforce development and education related projects.Her extensive efforts with registered apprenticeships and pre-apprenticeships are rooted in her blue-collar upbringing in Youngstown, Ohio. Working collaboratively with business and industry, education providers, community organizations, and workforce agencies, she writes strategic plans, facilitates meetings, and provides project management and leadership. Her work with registered apprenticeship started early in her career. Prior to joining TPMA, Vicki served as a director of an Ohio Technical Center. In her role she provided leadership in guiding her colleagues to work collaboratively with a manufacturing sector partnership to assure employers that curriculum was consistent across education providers for registered apprenticeship programs. Her post-secondary related career also led her to providing related instruction for registered apprenticeships than any other education provider in the locale.