The Tech Hub is a community designed to help connect talented employees with the tech businesses that are increasingly calling the state and cities like Stamford their home.

“Our overall goal with the Southwest Connecticut Tech Hub is to create a center of innovation across greater Fairfield County to attract companies, connect employers with a talent pool and deliver necessary training to help companies and employees capitalize on their next great tech opportunities,” explained Patricia Meyer, director of the Good Jobs Challenge Program at the Stamford Partnership. “The Good Jobs Challenge grant seeks to expand opportunities across diverse populations and communities, with the objective of removing systemic barriers for underrepresented workers. This effort, focused on tech in greater Fairfield County, will bring greater equity to training and hiring for residents of the region.”

Written by Justin McGown, Westfair Business Journal.

Women are slowly making their way back to the working world after the pandemic kept so many at home with their kids. But just landing the job isn’t always enough to successfully transition to the workforce. We did a deep dive into a local non-profit supporting women with clothing. Dress for Success Mid-Fairfield County Program Director, Michelle Artis, talked about the organization, what they look for in donations and why it makes such a difference to hundreds of local women.

To listen to the episode, click: WICC 600 AM and 107.3 FM / Melissa in the Morning: Dress for Success (audioboom.com)

To buy tickets to attend our upcoming event: Buy Tickets — The WorkPlace: Purse-suit of Success 2024 (readysetauction.com)

The draft South Western Region Metropolitan Planning Organization (SWRMPO) 2025-2028 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) is a dynamic list of all highway and public transit projects proposed to be undertaken utilizing Federal Highway Administration and Federal Transit Administration funding during federal fiscal years 2025-2028 within Darien, Greenwich, New Canaan, Norwalk, Stamford, Weston, Westport, and Wilton. The draft TIP is being updated and will be considered for endorsement at the SWRMPO meeting on April 18, 2024. It is being circulated beforehand to ensure that community concerns are properly included. In accordance with the WestCOG Public Involvement Plan, SWRMPO is initiating a public comment period which will begin at noon March 1, 2024 and conclude at noon on April 1, 2024.

Also considered for endorsement are the CT Department of Transportation (CTDOT) draft Air Quality Conformity Determinations for Ozone and Particulates. The draft Tl P and draft Air Quality Conformity Determination documents are available for inspection at westcog.org beginning March 1, 2024. Persons with limited internet access may contact WestCOG by telephone: 475-323-2071, via email: plan@westcog.org or mail the WestCOG office (1 Riverside Road, Sandy Hook, CT 06482) for assistance. Comments on the draft TIP or draft air quality conformity may be made by mail to the WestCOG office, email: plan@westcog.org telephone: 475-323-2071 or at the following public information meetings:

SWRMPO Public Information Meeting: Tuesday March 12, 2024 from 7pm-8pm at the Ferguson Library- 1 Public Library Plaza, Stamford, CT 06904

Virtual Public Information Meeting: Thursday March 14, 2024 from 12pm-1pm over Zoom. Please go to westcog.org to access the meeting link.

To register to make a comment at the public information meetings, please contact plan@westcog.org and provide your name as well as the subject matter you are commenting on. Comments will be addressed on a first-come, first-served basis. For language assistance or other accommodations, contact Western Connecticut Council of Governments at least five business days prior to the meeting at help@westcog.org

CTDOT’s draft 2025-2028 Statewide Transportation Improvement Program (STIP) will be available for review for a 30-day public comment period from May 1-31, 2024. Comments from the public must be received on or before May 31, 2024. Comments should be emailed to DOT.STIPComments@ct.gov or mailed to Maribeth Wojenski, Bureau of Policy and Planning, Connecticut Department of Transportation, P.O. Box 317546, Newington, Connecticut 06131- 7546.

Visit us online at westcog.org

Telephone/fax 475-323-2060

New Haven’s location is open once a month, by appointment only, to be scheduled by participating agencies, including job training and employment companies. It is located in the community center of Elm City Communities’ Mill River Crossing housing complex.

A national organization dedicated to helping prepare women for the workforce with professional attire and career development is now partnering with New Haven’s housing authority.

Elm City Communities and Bridgeport-based job readiness company The WorkPlace worked together to bring the national program, “Dress for Success,” to the city.

“Our role is absolutely to be a provider of the highest quality housing that is affordable in a community, but we know that housing is just one aspect of what people need,” Elm City Communities President Dr. Karen DuBois-Walton said. “Once people actually feel stably housed and live somewhere that they can afford, it offers that opportunity to explore all the other hopes and dreams that they may have for themselves.”

New Haven native Cristal Castro first used Dress for Success around 2015 to help prepare for two impending job interviews. Castro needed to travel by bus and train to reach the Bridgeport office.

“I had to kind of go on Google and get my GPS on my cell phone and everything and figure that out but once you get out to the train station, it’s right in a downtown area,” Castro said.

Dress for Success provided Castro with a suit that she wore on her job interviews. She also landed a new job. She said she’s thankful the New Haven branch is now available so women in her city don’t have to travel as far as Bridgeport or Hartford to get the assistance they need.

“It’s more than about a suit. It’s about empowerment. It’s about helping women who need the help to actually move into economic self-sufficiency,” The WorkPlace Chief Operating Officer Adrienne Parkmond said.

Adrienne Parkmond, COO of The WorkPlace (left) and Michelle Artis, Dress for Success Director (right), celebrate after a ribbon cutting at the Mill River Crossing public housing complex in New Haven, where a pop-up shop will be held every month to give residents access to clothing for work and job interviews. (Photo taken by Ryan Caron King /Connecticut Public/ Connecticut Public.)

Women referred to the program from other resources schedule an appointment for a fitting and receive a free suit for the job interview. They also get trained on interview skills. Once a job is secured, each woman receives an additional six items of work clothing.

New Haven’s location is open once a month, by appointment only, to be scheduled by participating agencies, including job training and employment companies. It is located in the community center of Elm City Communities’ Mill River Crossing housing complex.

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