Making Connections 2024 – Successful Models for Career Awareness, Outreach, and Recruitment in Our Varied Communities

This session about national and agency-level workforce datasets was presented as part of TWC’s Making Connections 2024 transit workforce conference in November, 2024.

Session Description: Consistent with FTA’s strategic goal of driving workforce recruitment, this session explored successful models and strategies for increasing awareness of transit careers among potential workers. Presenters also focused on approaches to recruiting and retaining individuals from diverse backgrounds, emphasizing engagement with the communities transit serves. Through discussions of hands-on initiatives, mentoring and training programs, and partnerships between transit agencies and community organizations, this session explored various ways transit systems can create sustainable pipelines to attract and retain talent from communities of different sizes and demographics.

Moderator: 

• David Stephen: Senior Communications Specialist – International Transportation Learning Center / Transit Workforce Center

Speakers:

• Scott Joiner: Senior Manager, Talent Acquisition – Bi-State Development/Metro Transit (St. Louis)
• Adam Parast: Enterprise and Strategic Initiatives Lead – King County Metro (WA)
• Antonio Pollard: Organizer – Amalgamated Transit Union Local 689 (DC)
• Dan Stoffer: Manager, Bus Instruction – Metro Transit (MN)
• Jaymi Swarbrick: Director of Human Resources – Merrimack Valley Transit (MeVa – MA)
• Trenise Winters: Assistant Executive Director – Bi-State Development/Metro Transit (St. Louis)