OKLAHOMA CITY — Gov. Mary Fallin and several other governors on Thursday met with President Donald Trump to talk about workforce development.
Trump signed an executive order to expand apprenticeships and vocational training. The order removes federal restrictions that prevented some industries from creating apprenticeship programs, its supporters say.
Fallin launched Oklahoma Works in 2015 to ensure students are prepared for high-quality, high-paying jobs that the state wants to retain and attract. Her office says the program was modeled after the America Works initiative she created in 2013 when she was chairman of the National Governors Association.
“Aligning our education and workforce training programs to provide relevant work skills will be the best way to keep job growth strong,” Fallin said. “I appreciate President Trump’s leadership and commitment to education and workforce issues, and his executive order to make policy changes that encourage more apprenticeship programs.”
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In March, Fallin was one of three governors who went on an National Governors Association-sponsored trip to Germany and Switzerland to study apprenticeships. The goal of the trip was to learn how those countries effectively leverage apprenticeships as a key workforce and economic development strategy, and to provide governors with ideas as they look to build globally competitive talent development systems in their states.
Fallin was expected to leave Washington, D.C., later in the day for the Paris Air Show. She will lead a trade delegation, said Michael McNutt, a spokesman for the governor.
While overseas, Fallin will also visit Denmark as part of an economic development trip, McNutt said.
The Oklahoma Business Roundtable covers the cost of the governor’s trip to Paris and Denmark, he said.
Fallin is expected to return June 24, McNutt said.
