News & Updates

RISE’s Patsy Richards in the News

Photo of Patsy Richards

Patsy Richards, RISE’s director of Long-Term CareWorks, was recently featured in articles on OPB.org and OregonLive.com for her work on a $200 million legislative package designed to support equity in the workforce. Learn more about Patsy and this new initiative in the media round-up below:

December 6, 2022 – OPB.org – Oregon Gov. Kate Brown floats $200M legislative package aimed at diversifying state’s workforce

Oregon Gov. Kate Brown announced she’s pushing a $200 million economic recovery package in the upcoming short legislative session that will put racial justice at the forefront of the state’s efforts to bolster its workforce.

According to Brown, the state’s Racial Justice Council — chaired by Marin Arreola, president of Advanced Economic Solutions, Inc., and Patsy Richards, director at Long-Term CareWorks and a senior staff member at RISE Partnership — is taking a leading role in developing that legislation.

Jan. 12, 2022 – OPB.org – Lawmakers get first look at Gov. Kate Brown’s $200 million workforce development plan

Patsy Richards, director of the workforce development Trust program Long-Term CareWorks, said the pandemic has illustrated just how much the state labor market has changed in recent years.

She told lawmakers that the $200 million package could break down barriers for certain Oregonians struggling to enter the workforce – such as helping buy new scrubs for low-income nursing students or paying for childcare for parents in apprenticeship programs.

“By 2030, which is just eight years away, 75% of our workforce will be millennials,” Richards said. “This is why climbing the corporate ladder does not matter as much to them anymore. A work-life balance is what’s coming into view. … The workforce has changed, and we need to change with it.

Jan. 9, 2022 – OregonLive.com – Opinion: An investment in Oregon’s people and Oregon’s future

“The reasons behind the gap between privileged and less-privileged Oregonians are many and overlapping. The legacy of systemic racism – historical inequities, discrimination and exclusion;, disparities in educational opportunity and health care; and the impact of intergenerational poverty – enables disparate conditions to persist. Equity is about real access, not perceived access. We need to remove barriers to entering the workforce for individuals without a support system. That’s why we support the Future Ready Oregon initiative.”

– Patsy Richards, Director, Long-Term CareWorks 

For more information on Long-Term CareWorks, visit longtermcareworks.org

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