Trinity Joins Capital CoLAB Partnership
Greater Washington Partnership’s Capital CoLAB Announces Trinity Washington University Will Join the Growing Community
With the addition of Trinity Washington University, the Capital CoLAB gains a partner with a history rooted in ensuring equitable and inclusive access to educational opportunities
For Immediate Release, May 10, 2021
Washington, D.C. — Today, the Greater Washington Partnership announced that it has added Trinity Washington University as a new partner of the Capital CoLAB (Collaborative of Leaders in Academia and Business). Trinity will launch the CoLAB’s Digital Tech Credential program in Spring 2021 with a new minor and certificate in data analytics.
The Capital CoLAB, Greater Washington Partnership’s skills and talent initiative, is an action-oriented partnership that brings together the leaders of the region’s top academic institutions and the largest employers to shape the diverse digital tech talent ecosystem. CoLAB’s programs span K-12 school districts, community colleges, universities, and large employers who are all working to ensure that the Capital Region offers pathways to digital tech employment while expanding and diversifying the learners who pursue it. Trinity Washington University, with a main campus in Washington, DC and an enrollment of about 2,000 students, is well-equipped to maximize its CoLAB partnership.
“Trinity’s mission and history are rooted in providing a high-quality liberal arts educational experience for our student body and prioritizing opportunities for women and underserved communities,” said Patricia McGuire, President, Trinity Washington University. “Capital CoLAB’s mission is in direct alignment with Trinity’s work in preparing students across the lifespan for the intellectual, ethical and spiritual dimensions of contemporary work, civic and family life. As a university founded to promote equity for women in education as a fundamental mission, and rooted in the Catholic tradition of social justice, Trinity has worked to achieve racial equity in programs, policies, and practices across the decades. We look forward to working with the CoLAB, our peers in the higher learning space, and leading businesses to take ensure Capital Region students pursuing liberal arts educations have access to the training and opportunities that will allow them to thrive in today’s digital economy.”
In 2020, Trinity Washington University reaffirmed its commitment to racial equity by launching Trinity DARE: Driving Actions for Racial Equity. Through this program, the university has committed to taking specific steps to improve the lifelong economic and social opportunities of students and their families. This summer, Trinity will welcome more than 30 D.C. Public Schools students in a new Cybernetics Summer Immersion Program that includes a dual enrollment course and an internship program.
Michelle Vásquez Trinity Washington University ’22
Trinity senior Michelle Vásquez, who lives in Washington, D.C., and is majoring in political science and business administration, is excited about Trinity’s new minor in data analytics and the career and networking opportunities through CoLAB. “Given the fast-growing digital age we are living in, it is imperative to expand my knowledge in data analytics and transfer these skills into the workforce. After completing a few internships in politics and business, I understood the importance of knowing how to use data visualization, coding language, and more. A minor in data analytics enables me to read, interpret, manipulate, and present data. As someone who wants to influence policymaking in the future, I look forward to applying the data analytic skillsets that I learn at Trinity into future presentations in the workforce!”
The Capital CoLAB focuses on high-impact, scalable solutions to create education and economic opportunities accessible to all residents. CoLAB’s recent analysis of the region’s workforce projects that more than 60,000 tech and tech adjacent jobs will go unfilled annually through 2025. The CoLAB is committed to engaging 45,000 students and adult learners in digital tech pathways, at least 50-percent of whom will be from underrepresented populations. With the addition of Trinity Washington University, the Capital CoLAB now has 18 employer partners, 28 higher education institutions, and five K-12 jurisdictions collaborating to ensure that all students – regardless of race, gender, or zip code – have the opportunity to thrive in our digital economy.
“We are really delighted that Trinity Washington University is joining CoLAB’s Digital Tech Credential work,” said Dr. Jeanne Contardo, Vice President and Managing Director of the Capital CoLAB. “Trinity has a long history of promoting equitable access to educational opportunities; CoLAB’s collaborative effort between the Capital Region’s largest employers and leading educators to meet the region’s digital tech workforce demand and build the most diverse digital tech workforce in the country will be strengthened by Trinity’s active involvement. We look forward to learning from Trinity and partnering with them to ensure this region is a place where everyone can live, work, build a business, and raise a family successfully.”
About Trinity Washington University
Trinity Washington University was founded in 1897 as an undergraduate college for women and today enrolls 2,000 women and men in the College of Arts and Sciences, School of Education, School of Nursing and Health Professions, and School of Professional and Graduate Studies. Trinity enrolls more D.C. residents than any other private university in the city and in the nation and is designated by the U.S. Department of Education as a Minority Serving Institution. Trinity is the only university in D.C. designated as both a Predominantly Black Institution and Hispanic Serving Institution.
About the Greater Washington Partnership
The Greater Washington Partnership is a first-of-its-kind civic alliance of CEOs in the region, drawing from the leading employers and entrepreneurs committed to making the Capital Region— from Baltimore to Richmond—one of the world’s best places to live, work and thrive. Working in collaboration with leaders across our communities, the Partnership connects and leverages the region’s extraordinary assets to advance inclusive, actionable solutions that strengthen Capital Region as a leading global region and center for commerce and innovation.
Trinity Media Contact: Ann Pauley, Media Relations, pauleya@trinitydc.edu , 202-884-9725
Greater Washington CoLAB Media Contact: Nina Sharma, nsharma@greaterwashingtonpartnership.com , 646-706-1224
