Bentonville, AR: The Be Pro Be Proud National Conference will be held in Bentonville, Arkansas from June 28 through June 30. The National Conference will convene key workforce leaders from Arkansas, Georgia, North Carolina,South Carolina and Tennessee, among other states, to join industry leaders and legislators to address the growing need of skilled talent in each state’s workforce. The Be Pro Be Proud National Conference will feature panel discussions and breakout sessions facilitating collaboration amongst attendees to address the perceptions of technical professions and the skills gap impacting key industries in each state. Be Pro Be Proud state efforts will also partake in strategic programming to address best practices in operations, communications and fundraising to position each state for success.
The Be Pro Be Proud National Conference will feature United States Senator John Boozman (Arkansas), a panel discussion led by the Co-Chairman of the House Skilled American Workforce Caucus, Rep. French Hill (AR-2) and the Ranking Member of the House Education and Workforce Committee, Rep. Virginia Foxx (NC-5). The National Conference will also highlight numerous Arkansas workforce leaders such as Arkansas State Senator Jane English; Cody Waits, Director of the Arkansas Office of Skills Development; Randy Zook, President & CEO of the Arkansas State Chamber of Commerce/AIA and Steven Lamm, Director of Workforce Development with Jonesboro Unlimited, Inc. Other notable attendees include: North Carolina State Representative Jason Saine; Mitch Bettis, President & CEO of Arkansas Business Publishing Group; Dr. Gail Hudson, Professor of Marketing at Arkansas State University’s Neil Griffin College of Business; and Dan Ferguson, Founding Partner of Groove Jones, Inc.
To date, Be Pro Be Proud has hosted more than 175,000 students across three states with more than 61,000 students signing up to be connected with post-secondary technical educational opportunities and employment information with Be Pro Be Proud partners. Since 2016, Be Pro Be Proud has made more than 1,000 tour stops across roughly 300 cities engaging the next generation of pride, progress and professionals in the United States.
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Be Pro Be Proud is a workforce development initiative operating throughout the United States committed to changing perceptions around technical careers through the use of virtual reality experiences allowing users to step into a day in the life of a skilled professional. Since 2020, Be Pro Be Proud has launched programs in Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina with new states expected to join in the future.
