From Convening to Career Pathways: How Employer Collaboration is Shaping Detroit’s Healthcare Workforce
In Detroit, a promising new pilot is demonstrating what’s possible when workforce partners align around a shared goal: creating accessible, high-quality jobs in the healthcare sector.
Born out of Midwest Urban Strategies’ 2024 Fall Convening, Catch the Motor City Momentum, this collaboration is more than a program launch. It’s a real-time example of how employer engagement can drive both community access and job quality.
The pilot, a partnership between Skilltrade, Focus: HOPE, and MUS Member, Detroit Employment Solutions Center (DESC), is supporting 18 Detroit residents on their path to becoming Certified Clinical Medical Assistants (CCMAs). With EPIC Health and Advantage Health stepping in as externship hosts and committed employer partners, the program is designed to connect training directly to employment. These healthcare systems aren’t just offering placements, they’re building a pipeline and planning to hire graduates, reinforcing the importance of employer engagement from day one.
What makes this model especially powerful is its community-centered approach. Training is held on-site at Focus: HOPE, a trusted community anchor offering wraparound services to support student success. Skilltrade delivers both a full certification course and a short-term career exploration option, allowing individuals to explore the profession before committing to a full-scale certification training program, thus lowering barriers and helping participants find the right fit before diving into something that may not interest them.
“Focus: HOPE is proud to partner with Skilltrade and Detroit at Work on the Medical Assistant Pilot program launched in April 2025. This collaboration represents our shared commitment to provide hands-on technical skills, essential soft skills, supportive services, and career development support, while creating career-building pathways to opportunity and empowering Detroit residents to thrive in the healthcare field,” said Tiffany Graydon, Director of Workforce Development & Education at Focus: HOPE.
“This partnership is a perfect example of what happens when we stop trying to solve challenges for communities and instead build solutions with them,” said Tracey Carey, Executive Director of Midwest Urban Strategies. “At MUS, we believe the most sustainable workforce strategies come from the ground up, when workforce development boards work alongside community organizations, employers, and training provider partners as equal collaborators. This program doesn’t just prepare people for jobs, it reshapes how opportunity is delivered, with trust, intention, and a deep respect for the people we serve,” says Ms. Carey.
And it’s already gaining traction beyond the classroom. The story behind this pilot was recently shared on the DisruptED podcast
where representatives from Skilltrade and Focus: HOPE highlighted how their partnership emerged directly from conversations sparked at the MUS Convening. A follow-up episode, featuring MUS Executive Director Tracey Carey and Skilltrade’s Sandy Mead, continues the dialogue, underscoring the convening’s role in catalyzing community-driven workforce solutions.
For MUS and our network, this pilot affirms a critical lesson: when employers are at the table early, programs can be designed not just to train, but to hire.
By embedding training within community organizations, layering on mentorship and support, and working with employers who value readiness and retention, we’re not just filling roles, we’re creating careers that offer mobility and growth in the high demand sector, healthcare.
This is employer engagement in action, and it’s exactly the kind of momentum that will move our workforce forward.
Podcast Link Episode 1: https://marketscale.com/industries/podcast-network/disrupted/detroits-workforce-transformation-runs-on-innovation-inclusion-and-opportunity/
Podcast Link Episode 2: https://marketscale.com/industries/education-technology/the-new-formula-for-workforce-and-talent-development-inclusive-partnerships-braided-funding-and-career-aligned-training/
