Source: www.acwa.com

ACWA Foundation Event to Strengthen Link Between Students and Water Careers

Fetched 2026-07-21 08:01 from www.acwa.com

Reading Summary (AI-generated)

Reading Summary: ACWA Foundation Central Valley Water Careers Pathways Symposium

Key Facts

The ACWA Foundation will host a Central Valley Water Careers Pathways Symposium on September 24 in Fresno
The event targets high school counselors and public/private sector industry representatives to showcase water sector career opportunities
Content will cover job opportunities, pathways, course requirements, local needs, salaries, and benefits
The ACWA Foundation is a 501(c)3 nonprofit established by the ACWA Board of Directors in 2022, operating independently from ACWA
Executive Director Lisa Mealoy described it as a pilot program with potential to scale statewide as an ongoing educator-industry partnership

Who Is Affected

High school students in the Central Valley (primary audience, reached indirectly through counselors)
High school counselors (direct participants)
California water agencies seeking to fill workforce pipelines

Policy/Legal Angle

No specific laws or regulations cited; initiative is workforce development policy in nature, addressing a documented water sector staffing gap

Blog Angles

How severe is California’s water workforce shortage? What data exists on projected retirements and unfilled positions at Central Valley agencies?
Why target counselors rather than students directly? Is the intermediary approach more effective, and what does research say about when students choose technical careers?
Can this pilot scale? What would statewide educator-industry partnerships require in funding and coordination?

Full Text

ACWA Foundation Event to Strengthen Link Between Students and Water Careers

The ACWA Foundation will host a Central Valley Water Careers Pathways Symposium on Sept. 24 to expand awareness of water sector career opportunities among educators and strengthen the workforce pipeline between water agencies and schools.

The symposium in Fresno will convene high school counselors and private and public sector industry representatives to showcase the broad range of career opportunities within the water sector. Content will include information about job opportunities, pathways, course requirements, local needs, salaries, benefits and more.

“Studies show we need to reach students earlier, capturing their attention and interest in the water sector during high school. Year after year, counselors provide direct guidance to new classes of students about career opportunities. This pilot program could become the foundation for ongoing educator-industry partnerships throughout the state,” said ACWA Foundation Executive Director Lisa Mealoy.

The ACWA Foundation is a nonprofit 501(c)3 formed by the ACWA Board of Directors in 2022. The Foundation and its Board of Trustees operate separately and independently from ACWA and its Board of Directors.

For more information about the event, including sponsorship opportunities, visit acwa-foundation.org .

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