In May 2022 the Colorado State Legislature enacted HB22-1350, the Regional Talent Development Initiative Grant Program, also known as Opportunity Now. The $85 million grant program was to create transformative change for Colorado’s workforce through industry and education collaboration. Recipients proposed solutions to deepen intentional alignment and collaboration between Colorado’s secondary, post-secondary, and workforce ecosystems in order to enhance the economic mobility of Colorado’s learners and earners and thereby helping Colorado’s communities recover from COVID-related economic disruption.

In 2023 Activatework was fortunate enough to be selected as an Opportunity Now recipient with a grant of 1.3 million. Activatework’s founder and CEO, Helen Hayes, brings deep roots in the Tech & IT employer space and leads the Steering Committee of employers. Built by business leaders, for businesses, the Partnership launched in December of 2023 with 20 employer partners and 18 Edu Task Force members across JeffCo, Adams12, DPS, CCCS, MSU, CMU, and UCD. Together through 5 identified critical jobs and action plans, the partnership is focused on deploying strategies and tools to co-design talent supply chains that connect learners and workers to jobs and career advancement opportunities.

This funding supports advancing authentic employer leadership in co-creating streamlined, high-performing talent pipelines across various programs in our education system.