Our connections with schools, employers and higher education allow us to offer opportunities to Portland-area students and develop their college-and-career aspirations. Our intent is to build a strong, well-educated regional workforce.

The Portland Workforce Alliance works with community partners to provide high school students with more than 5,300 career-related learning experiences a year through career days, career mentorships, classroom presentations, mock interviews and our signature event, the NW Youth Careers Expo, which went virtual in 2021 and 2022. 

This work is paying off in big ways and small. We see young people securing excellent jobs as a direct result of connections they made in high school with employers. We also see them starting college with a better sense of direction, which is helpful for earning a degree or certificate on time and avoiding unnecessary student debt.