DEARBORN — Late last year, former Gov.  Snyder appointed Henry Ford College President Russell Kavalhuna to a two-year term on the state’s 21st Century Talent Creation Subcommittee.

The subcommittee will work with the governor’s Talent Investment Board, which includes industry executives, labor leaders, educators, lawmakers and representatives of various state agencies. It will focus on changing demands for skills and how collaboration with educators can quickly prepare students for rapidly changing workplaces.

In addition to Kavalhuna, Snyder appointed Grand Rapids Community College President Dr. Bill Pink; Alpena Public Schools Supt. Dr. John VanWagoner; Dr. Joseph Lubig, associate dean of the School of Education at Northern Michigan University; Megan Schrauben, executive director of the MiSTEM Network for the Michigan Department of Technology, Management and Budget; Alycia Meriweather, deputy superintendent of external partnerships, enrollment & specialty programming at the Detroit Public Schools Community District and Dr. Mark Pogliano, principal at the Jackson Area Career Center. 

Michigan is projected to have more than 811,000 career openings in fields facing a critical talent shortage through 2024. HFC is a core partner in Southeast Michigan with the Snyder-created Marshall Plan.

Henry Ford College President Russell Kavalhuna

The Marshall Plan is a $100 million investment to revolutionize Michigan’s talent and education system. It supports schools that want to transform education through programs like competency-based certifications, world-class curricula and classroom equipment, scholarships and stipends, and support for career navigators and teachers. The Marshall Plan funding is an addition to more than $225 million in existing talent development efforts in the state.

On July 26, HFC and the Department of Talent & Economic Development hosted 100 business and educational leaders from around Michigan at the Marshall Plan for Talent Workshop to build partnerships that will move the state forward.

“I am honored and humbled to have been chosen to serve on the Subcommittee with these fine educational leaders,” Kavalhuna said. “I am truly excited about this opportunity to work with my fellow educators from across the state of Michigan to improve Michigan’s future workforce.”