When students in Ottumwa looked around their community, they saw a gap: there wasn’t a dedicated space outside the classroom where young people could connect with mentors, explore career opportunities, and build real-world skills before graduation.
Instead of waiting for Washington to solve the problem, they stepped up to help design the solution themselves — and we helped secure the federal funding to make it a reality.
What’s new: We secured $500,000 in funding to expand Ottumwa Career Campus into a flexible hub for tutoring, career mentoring, workforce training, and hands-on programming for students and young adults across Wapello County. ⬇️
Why it matters: When young people can’t see a path forward close to home, too many feel forced to leave. This project creates new opportunities for students to connect directly with local employers, explore high-demand careers, and gain the skills needed to succeed in southeast Iowa’s growing economy — all just steps from their high school.
The big picture: This investment builds on our broader community-driven work to strengthen Iowa’s workforce pipeline and create more opportunities for the next generation. Earlier this month, we delivered $2 million for DMACC’s new workforce training center, and we’re leading the bipartisan PARTNERS Act to expand apprenticeship partnerships between schools, workforce providers, and small businesses across Iowa.
Bottom Line: The best ideas start right here in Iowa — not in Washington. I’ll keep fighting to deliver the workforce investments that connect Iowa students with the careers our communities need them to fill.