Sen. Henri Martin & CT Senate Republicans Unveil “A Better Way to A Prosperous Connecticut” to bolster workforce
March 1, 2023
Senator Henri Martin is joined by Dr. Jaime Rechenberg, Bristol Public School STEM Supervisor
HARTFORD – Chief Deputy Republican Leader Senator Henri Martin (R- Bristol) and Connecticut Senate Republicans colleagues today unveiled “A Better Way to A Prosperous Connecticut” – a package of legislative proposals aimed at bolstering Connecticut’s workforce and addressing shortages in key industries. The caucus was joined by leaders from the construction industry and education communities.
“One of the common themes Senator Cicarella and I heard during our various conversations with stakeholders was the word ‘pathways,’ and in our plan, ‘A Better Way to A Prosperous Connecticut’ that is in front of you…we want the state to encourage the creation of those career pathways. Pathways to becoming a nurse or a teacher, pathways into the construction trades, into the IT sector, into hospitality, finance, marketing and more,” Senator Martin begins.
“For far too long, our children have been hearing that to be successful, you need to go to college,” Martin continued. “Our education system, including our parents, conditioned multiple generations on ‘college or bust’ and stigmatized manufacturing and construction, as well as discouraged students from pursuing other careers.”
“We need to listen to our job creators. As lawmakers, we should work together to create those paths to lifelong careers and address not only the teacher and health care worker shortages, but to create growth for the opportunity for other careers such as welders, plumbers, electricians, HVAC technicians and so many more. We created ‘A Better Way to A Prosperous Connecticut’ with those goals in mind.”
Martin was joined by the Bristol Public School STEM Supervisor, Dr. Jaime Rechenberg, who added, “Each of our pathways offer students the ability to gain college credit through articulations with CT State Community Colleges and Universities. Each pathway also has an opportunity for students to gain industry-recognized credentials and work-based learning. Cooperative work experiences are being developed across the district through both our home-grown CWE (Cooperative Work Experience) program and a partnership with ReadyCT.”
###
