Cosmetology student Amalie Hursh was selected as a winner for Professional Beauty Association's prestigious Beacon award!

Amalie is one of 100 winners nationwide. 

MEDIUM | This week’s meeting of more than 200 business and education leaders from nearly 70 communities across the country was a great chance to hear what’s working as we work to grow the numbers of people with an education beyond high school.

One thing that stuck with me: Having a great local economy doesn’t guarantee economic and social mobility for everyone who needs it. Many people are left behind because they aren’t prepared.

CHALKBEAT | When she was a little girl, Gloria Mendez would dream of walking across a stage in a cap and gown to receive her high school diploma.

But when she went into foster care at the age of 15, already a mother herself, that dream got further and further out of reach.

9NEWS | High school seniors take part in Discovery Day, which gives low-income students a chance to explore career choices like cosmetology, certified nursing assistant, and even massage therapy.

DENVER SCHOLARSHIP FOUNDATION | As part of a collaborative event—called Discovery Day—students from 11 DPS high schools had the opportunity to visit both Emily Griffith campuses with their DSF College Advisors to get a taste of several long-term career fields.

BUILDING DESIGN + CONSTRUCTION | Emily Griffith Technical College will take another step into the 21st century by offering courses in its Construction Careers Now program that incorporate virtual reality to train students how to work in high-citation safety areas on construction sites.

The school will also use VR in its nursing program to simulate real-life healthcare and emergency situations.

WESTWORD | As Denver's dining scene continues to grow, finding good employees — or any employees at all — remains a major challenge. Last January, Emily Griffith Technical College launched its Culinary Quick Start program to give free training to those looking to enter food service as a profession.

DENVER BUSINESS JOURNAL | The VR simulations ask students to act as if they were on the job — answering safety questions, identifying hazards, practicing operations — an unlimited number of times. That's something Alby Segall, president of the Emily Griffith Foundation (the funding arm of the college), sees as critical.

THE ATLANTIC | The employers who can’t seem to fill the United States’s roughly 6 million vacant jobs are at a loss for what to do. Qualified candidates are seemingly nowhere to be found.