Good Growth: APANO's New Workforce Development Program

Good Growth is a workforce development program of APANO. We match people with opportunities and provide tools and connection to training and resources. This program was a result of the Portland Clean Energy Fund, which APANO campaigned for and won in November 2018.

We launched Good Growth in 2022 with a group of four trainees going to Greensavers to learn about clean energy work. A few trainees shared their experiences with the program.

Đô was looking for an opportunity to train and gain experience that would lead to a stable career. He enjoyed working with his hands and was contracted for short-term jobs. That work wasn’t stable, pay was inconsistent, and he didn’t receive training that could transfer to gainful employment. He also didn’t have work history and was not English proficient. He applied to the green-construction training program and after 8 weeks on the program, GreenSavers hired him as a permanent employee. He now has a livable wage, weekends off to be with his family, benefits, and hopes to have his own business someday.

James was seeking direction for his future and enrolled in the APANO program to test out the waters. He received financial support and coaching as a participant of the green-construction training program. After he completed the training program, he applied and was accepted to Portland Youth Builders, a pre-apprenticeship program with wrap-around services for low-income youth under the age of 26.

Kim was on the manufacturing line for many years. During COVID, she decided that she wanted to gain more transferable skills, career opportunities, and was good at fixing things at home. When she saw the notice for our program on our WeChat group, she joined the information session to learn more. The green-construction training program was managed by APANO, an organization that she knew well, and training was with GreenSavers, a business in the Jade District for many years. That made it easy for her to make the leap and commit 8 weeks for training. She received wage, benefits, and exposure to different skills.

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