The Women’s Resource Awarded Nearly $350,000 to Support Career Program
HOUSTON, TX (July 18, 2025) — The Women’s Resource of Greater Houston (TWR) has been awarded nearly $350,000 through the Texas Talent Connection grant to support the growth of its YourLife Careers program. The funding will go toward providing 100 low-income women across Fort Bend, Harris, Montgomery, and Waller counties with training and potential opportunities in high-paying jobs in the non-destructive testing, trades, and healthcare industries.
The Women’s Resource aims to increase workforce participation among women – particularly those from underrepresented communities – by equipping them with the skills, support, and financial tools necessary to obtain and retain living-wage employment in high-growth industries. According to a December 2024 employment forecast from the Greater Houston Partnership, the Houston metro area is expected to see the greatest employment gains in the healthcare, construction, and professional and technical services sectors. Healthcare alone has added over 100,000 jobs in the region over the past decade, according to a Houston Chronicle analysis of employment data.
The Need
At the heart of this extension of the YourLife Careers program is the recognition that women face unique barriers to entering and advancing in the workforce, including access to affordable and relevant training, career navigation support, and financial resilience tools.
A 2020 report published by the National Skills Coalition found that 54% of available jobs in Texas are considered middle-skill, yet only 45% of its labor force has the necessary credentials. Compounding the issue is an “overdependence on external talent recruitment, underutilization of local workforce potential… and a real risk of low-wage workers being displaced without clear pathways to emerging opportunities,” according to a March 2025 assessment published by the Burning Glass Institute.
TWR’s initiative directly addresses these challenges by mobilizing women into high-wage, high-growth occupations – particularly in fields where women are underrepresented, such as Non-Destructive Testing Electrical and HVAC – but also in areas where women are already well-represented, such as Community Health Work.
The Solution
With the funding obtained through the Texas Talent Connection grant, TWR will launch an innovative, wraparound workforce development model that combines industry-recognized training, professional development, career coaching, and financial coaching services – creating a pathway to long-term, sustainable economic mobility for women in Houston.
The program will not only support nearly 100 women through career coaching and professional development workshops, but will also enroll over 50 women in apprenticeship program cohorts, developed in partnership with industry-leading organizations, to address the labor shortages in high-demand sectors and place program graduates in roles that align with their training and pay a higher livable wage.
To learn more about TWR’s free career coaching or apprenticeship programs, please contact Tiffany Banda, YourLife Coach Manager, at tbanda@thewomensresource.org.
For media inquiries, please contact Taylor Tatum, Development & Communications Coordinator, at ttatum@thewomensresource.org.
About Texas Talent Connection
Since 2015, the Office of the Texas Governor has awarded over $57 million in Texas Talent Connection grants, which support innovative education and workforce skills training programs that lead to successful job placements, increased wages, and improved job retention. See the full press release here.
