Boosting Opportunity for Women in Colorado Springs
Colorado Springs: A Hot Job Market, But Not Enough Women Benefit
According to the Colorado Springs Gazette, the Colorado Springs area added nearly 15,000 jobs in the 12 months ending Oct. 31, 2018, giving the region the fourth hottest job market in the nation. Additionally, the median (or midpoint) annual salary for jobs posted with the Pikes Peak Workforce Center is approaching $80,000.
Yet, too many Colorado Springs women aren’t benefiting from this economic growth, and are experiencing income inadequacy as the cost of living in Colorado Springs continues to rise rapidly. As a result, it’s getting harder and harder for families to make ends meet.
12 percent of El Paso county women living in poverty
Twelve percent of women 18 and older in El Paso County live in poverty. That’s 39,374 women – enough to nearly fill Air Force Academy’s Falcon Stadium. Tens of thousands more live above the federal poverty line, but still are not economically self-sufficient, and are all too often overlooked and undercounted. This isn’t just a devastating statistic – it’s a missed opportunity for all of Colorado, especially as high-paying IT jobs go unfilled in Colorado Springs.
Helping women achieve greater economic security
The Women’s Foundation of Colorado’s programmatic body of work,
WAGES (Women Achieving Greater Economic Security), combines our trusted research, public policy advocacy, and strategic grantmaking, to promote opportunities for women to prepare for and succeed in careers that pay livable wages. When women are equipped to meet employers’ skilled-labor demands, their workforce participation and earning potential improves and positively impacts the state’s economic growth.
To help women fill these skilled-labor demands, WFCO funds the work of our local grantee, CPCD. Its 2Gen Career Pathways Program program with Pikes Peak Community College provides job training for El Paso County women in high-growth career paths, such as IT and manufacturing, while their children receive early childhood education.
Additionally, we’re busy at the State Capitol during the 2019 legislative session to create systemic change for Colorado women. Our public policy priorities focus on elevating child care, making work really work for women and their employers, and propelling opportunity.
Join us to drive change
Join WFCO at our 2019 Colorado Springs Community Forum & Luncheon, where we’re hosting the panel Making Work Really Work for Women and Employers in the Pikes Peak Region. Panelists include Lance Bolton, Pikes Peak Community College; Vance Brown, The National Cybersecurity Center; Dana Hagood, USAA; Aikta Marcoulier, Small Business Development Center; and Heidi Rowland, Johnson & Johnson.
Honorary chairs include Tatiana Bailey, Barbara Myrick, and Ingrid Richter.
