A partnership with Texas Workforce Commission and Workforce Solutions will help employees seeking industry-recognized certificates; City-funded program to assist employees with the cost of obtaining degrees.
Pharr, Texas – In an effort to support the educational aspirations of employees seeking to pursue their professional growth, the City of Pharr is proud to announce the launching of the city’s first-ever Employee Development Pilot Program through two separate educational pathways. The Employee Development Pilot Program I (EDP Program I) will consist of a partnership with both the Texas Workforce Commission and Workforce Solutions and will assist employees in earning an industry-recognized certificate.
Through a separate city venture, Employee Development Pilot Program II (EDP Program II) will provide assistance to employees pursuing associate’s, bachelor’s or master’s degrees. Professional development is pivotal to improving the workforce and quality of life, and Pharr hopes to encourage its employees to continue working toward pursuing their professional educational goals.
“Opportunities for collaboration ultimately strengthen our entire community,” said Frank Almaraz, Chief Executive Officer, Workforce Solutions. “Not only will this partnership offer City of Pharr employees training towards industry-recognized credentials, but it will also encourage job satisfaction and upward mobility within city departments that could lead to positions with higher pay,” he added.
According to data provided by the City of Pharr Human Resources Department, the city currently has 606 Full-Time Employees (FTEs). Of these FTEs, only 48 employees (7.9%) have at least 60 hours of college or an associate’s degree and 72 employees (11.9%) have a bachelor’s degree or above. Among the FTEs in the Fire and Police Departments, about 65 employees (10.7%) have some sort of education who are civil service employees. In total, only about 185 employees (30.5%) have pursued some sort of education. Through both Employee Education Pilot Programs, the city hopes to improve the number of employees with industry-recognized certificates and professional degrees.
“We want our employees to excel in the workplace, at home, and in our community,” said Mayor Ambrosio Hernandez, M.D. “There are many employees who would like to pursue higher education, but because of financial or other reasons, have been unable to do so,” continued Hernandez.
These programs will also be in alignment with the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board’s “60x30TX” Higher Education Strategic Plan, which states that by 2030, at least 60 percent of Texans ages 25-34 will have a certificate or degree. Pharr is excited to contribute to this strategic plan through its Employee Development Pilot Programs.
As part of this $100,000 grant from the Texas Workforce Commission and Workforce Solutions, the City plans to promote learning and educational advancement while helping employees seek industry-recognized certificates.
For those employees interested in pursuing higher education, the City has committed funding that will be used to assist employees enrolling in associate’s, bachelor’s, or master’s degree programs as long as the program aligns with their career path in the City.
“The City of Pharr is committed to helping our employees improve their educational attainment level, which will ultimately improve their quality of life and serve as an inspiration to their families and our community; creating a culture of lifelong learning amongst our community,” said Hernandez. “We are excited about these two new Employee Development Pilot Programs and partnership and would like to especially thank our partners at the Texas Workforce Commission, Commissioner Julian Alvarez, and Frank Almaraz, CEO, Workforce Solutions for making this possible for our employees,” he continued.
“Together we are transforming our community and workforce through education!” he added.
The Board of Commissioners of the City of Pharr met for a regular meeting on Monday, November 18, 2019, and considered an agenda that included the following highlights:
Pharr Proclaims Nov. 30 as Small Business Saturday
The Pharr City Commission approved a proclamation observing Saturday, November 30, 2019, as Small Business Saturday. Created by American Express in 2010, Small Business Saturday was started to encourage shoppers to buy local and make holiday purchases at homegrown small businesses. Receiving the proclamation were Rebecca Arizmendi, President/CEO of the Greater Pharr Chamber of Commerce, Karina Lopez, Pharr EDC Business Retention & Expansion Manager, Mario Lizcano, Greater Pharr Chamber of Commerce Chairman and Vice President of the Pharr EDC, and Alma Caso, Board member of the Greater Pharr Chamber of Commerce and Co-Founder and CEO of Plaza Sports Center. “We are proud to join communities, cities, chambers of commerce, and economic development corporations across the country in proclaiming Saturday, November 30, 2019, as Small Business Saturday in Pharr,” said Arizmendi while receiving the proclamation. “The City of Pharr has many great small businesses and we encourage our community to shop local this holiday season,” she added.
Featured Events:
City of Pharr Christmas Lighting Ceremony – Monday, December 2, 2019, at 6 pm in front of City Hall.
Join Mayor Ambrosio Hernandez, M.D. and the Pharr City Commission on Monday, December 2, 2019, at 6:00 pm at Pharr City Hall for our Christmas Lighting Ceremony!
City of Pharr Christmas Posada – Saturday, December 14, 2019, from 6 – 11 pm in Downtown Pharr.
Kick-off your Christmas festivities in Pharr as we celebrate our annual Christmas Posada. There will be plenty of activities for families including pictures with Christmas characters, carolers, food booths, snow, ice skating, and much more!
Pharr and ISD Partners Host Census 2020 Parental Workshop
Pharr, Texas – Pharr joins thousands of cities across the United States in proactively working with the community to ensure a complete count in each of our jurisdictions and municipalities during the fast-approaching 2020 Census. As part of its efforts to promote an accurate count in the 2020 Census, the City of Pharr recently partnered with local school districts to host a 2020 Census Parental Workshop at the Pharr Development and Research Center. Partnering districts included Pharr-San Juan-Alamo Independent School District, Hidalgo Independent School District, Valley View Independent School District, and Vanguard Academy Charter School. Among the guest speakers were Pharr Mayor Ambrosio Hernandez, M.D. Dr. Narcisco Garcia, Superintendent of Vanguard Academy, and Xavier Salinas, Superintendent of Hidalgo ISD.
“An accurate Census count is important to ensuring we have fair representation in Congress and at the state level, and that we are distributed federal funds to our communities’ vital programs over the next decade – impacting housing, education, transportation, employment, health care, public policy, and more,” said Mayor Hernandez during his welcoming remarks at the event.
The goal of the workshop was to encourage parents to become advocates for their communities and assist the city in the efforts of collecting an accurate count in 2020. Without a correct count, critical resources that families rely on could be affected, including the amount of assistance they receive from the federal government.
“Most importantly, the 2020 Census helps determine how much money communities receive for the critical resources that children and families will depend on for the next 10 years – basically when you think about it, an entire childhood or generation will be affected by this count,” Hernandez added. “Resources that impact our families and children include food assistance, Head Start, childcare, housing support, public schools, early intervention services for children with special needs, and children’s health insurance,” he continued.
Pharr officials and partners want to remind all residents that when counting a household, everyone counts, no matter how young. Oftentimes, households forget to include children under 5 and newborns, and these are critical counts as this age group will most benefit from the resources that will be provided during the next ten years as a result of the Census. Mayor Hernandez stressed the important role that parents play in schools and the community, reminding them that the census is built on trust and that the only way to get an accurate count is to work together to advocate in educating their families and friends about the importance of being counted in the Census and participating in the process.
“It is especially important that as parents with children in school you understand the impact to our local schools,” said Hernandez. “An accurate count in the 2020 Census will help determine future funding for special education, teacher training, technology, school lunch assistance, Head Start, after-school programs, and more,” Hernandez said.
At the end of the workshop, parents were asked to become Official Census Ambassadors; about 60 parents signed up. An official induction ceremony will be held for these parent ambassadors in December. The U. S. Census was also in attendance and held a job fair after the event, providing parents an opportunity to apply for a Census job. The City of Pharr thanks all partnering districts for their commitment to the 2020 Census count and the over 200 parents who attended the workshop, even on the coldest day of the year. Pharr will continue to work with parents, school districts, and the community to host workshops to inform the public about the importance of being counted in the 2020 Census, as well as hosting job fairs to help people become employed as official census workers.
Pharr, Texas – The City of Pharr joins thousands of cities across the United States in acting proactively to ensure a complete count in each of our jurisdictions and municipalities during the fast-approaching 2020 Census, and has partnered with local school districts in Pharr to join efforts to promote the Census among Pharr families to ensure a complete count.
Partnering districts include Pharr-San Juan-Alamo Independent School District, Hidalgo Independent School District, Valley View Independent School District, and Vanguard Academy Charter School. The partners have joined forces and will be holding a Parental Workshop for all Pharr families to become informed about the 2020 Census process and its importance to inform funding, representation, and public policy. The goal of the workshop is to encourage parents to become advocates for their communities and assist the city in the efforts of collecting the count in 2020. As a reminder, federal law protects the confidentiality of all individual responses the Census Bureau collects.
The Parental Workshop will be held at 9 am on Tuesday, November 12, 2019, at the City of Pharr Development and Research Center (850 W. Dicker Road in Pharr).
All media and the public are invited to attend.
DETAILS
WHAT: Census 2020 Parental Workshop
WHEN: Tuesday, November 12, 2019, from 9:00 am to 11:30 am
WHERE: City of Pharr Development and Research Center, 850 W. Dicker Road in Pharr.
Pharr, Texas – In honor of all Veterans who served in our United States military and armed forces, the City of Pharr is proud to host and celebrate Veterans Day on Saturday, November 9, 2019, with a “Salute to Veterans” parade and fireworks! The parade will begin at 4:30 pm and will be followed by a fireworks show at 6:30 pm. City of Pharr officials invite all Pharr residents and families to attend and show their support as we honor the men and women who have served and who are currently serving in the United States military.
The parade and fireworks will be held in Downtown Pharr, along Cage Blvd.
“Pharr is proud to salute all Veterans in our community, and we honor the many brave men and women who have served in the armed forces to protect our freedom and our country,” said Mayor Hernandez. “On behalf of the entire Pharr City Commission, we invite the public, our citizens, and all our veterans to come and enjoy the festivities,” he added.
This event is FREE and open to the public. All media and the public are invited to attend.
DETAILS
WHAT: City of Pharr Veterans Day Parade, Fireworks, & Concert
WHEN: Saturday, November 9, 2019 (Parade at 4:30 pm, Fireworks at 6:30 pm)
