EDITOR’S NOTE: South King Media Founder/Publisher Scott Schaefer serves on the Board of Directors for the Seattle Southside Chamber of Commerce.
The Seattle Southside Chamber of Commerce brought educators, economists, employers and public officials together in Kent on April 30 to examine how artificial intelligence, economic uncertainty and workforce shortages are reshaping education and employment across South King County.
Held at the accesso ShoWare Center, the 2026 Education and Workforce Summit focused on workforce readiness, apprenticeships, digital access, child care barriers and changing career pathways for students and adult workers throughout the region.
“By learning from these trends, we can support our next generation, strengthen our workforce, uplift our communities, and drive economic impact,” Seattle Southside Chamber President and CEO Samantha Le said during opening remarks. “Together, we can ensure that everyone in our community has the opportunity to thrive and achieve success on their own terms.”
Le said 1,500 students from 15 school districts were expected to attend a career showcase later in the day featuring more than 100 career pathways and industry exhibitors.
Economist Aaron Terrazas, founder of At Economics and a guest lecturer at the University of Washington Information School, said the Puget Sound economy is experiencing an unusual period of stagnation and uncertainty.
“Regional payroll jobs have effectively been flat since 2022,” Terrazas said. “That’s a historical anomaly outside of recession.”
Terrazas said healthcare has accounted for nearly all national job growth over the past year and a half, while professional and information sector jobs have weakened significantly. He said King County’s unemployment rate reached 5.7% in January compared to a national rate of 4.3%.
“There’s a lot of smoke but no smoking gun,” Terrazas said when discussing whether artificial intelligence is driving changes in the labor market. “The reality is kind of all of these reasons are tied together.”
Despite the uncertainty, Terrazas said small businesses have adapted more quickly than larger employers.
“Small businesses have had to pivot,” he said. “They pivoted quickly and now they’re set up for 2026.”
Kent Mayor Dana Ralph said local governments, schools and employers must work together to ensure students can build careers close to home.
“The thing that we can control at the local level is making sure that our employers have the skilled labor that they need, the skilled employees that they need, and making sure that our students have the training to be that skilled workforce,” Ralph said.
Ralph highlighted Kent’s CEO roundtable initiative, which brings manufacturers, educators and business leaders together to discuss workforce needs. She also noted a $2.65 million federal investment secured through Sen. Patty Murray for South King County education and workforce programs.
Jesse Johnson, director of community engagement for the Washington State Treasurer’s Office and a former state legislator, focused much of his presentation on apprenticeship programs and the skilled trades.
Johnson said the Puget Sound region is projected to have more than 500,000 construction and skilled trades openings by 2030 because of retirements and immigration related workforce shortages.
“The trades are not just a backup plan but a primary plan,” Johnson said repeatedly throughout his remarks.
Johnson said Washington currently has more than 200 registered apprenticeship programs and 60 pre apprenticeship programs, but only seven high school pre apprenticeship programs statewide, including programs in Federal Way and Highline.
He said the average age of an apprentice in Washington has risen to 32 and argued that students need earlier exposure to career pathways.
“We want to bring that back down because a lot of young people find themselves not knowing what they’re going to do between 18 and 22 if they’re not going to college,” Johnson said.
Johnson also pointed to barriers facing apprentices, including transportation, child care, workplace harassment and the region’s high cost of living.
“You got to be able to get through those three years and we need to provide sustainable ways for young people to do that,” he said.
Panel discussions throughout the summit repeatedly returned to concerns about AI, digital literacy and access to workforce training.
Dr. Concie Pedrosa, Superintendent of the Tukwila School District, said educators are working to expand career and technical education, dual credit opportunities and apprenticeships while also helping teachers adapt to rapidly changing technology.
“We’re not as nimble sometimes as some of the innovation that’s happening at the business level,” Pedrosa said.
Dr. Ann Oliva of the Washington Student Achievement Council said the state has become a national leader in financial aid support for apprentices and adult learners, but higher education systems still struggle to recognize work based experience and prior learning.
“We’re basically saying you still need to take English 101,” Oliva said when describing how some institutions fail to credit decades of workforce experience.
Several speakers emphasized the growing importance of adult education and retraining programs as workers adapt to economic changes and new technologies.
Andrew Benitez, Executive Director of Teaching & Learning Highline Public Schools said many students are exploring multiple career options before committing to a specific path.
“They’re still adolescents and they’re still figuring it out and that’s okay,” Benitez said.
SeaTac Deputy Mayor Senayet Negusse said workforce challenges in airport-related industries are closely tied to child care access and economic opportunity.
“Affordable accessible and quality child care is critical to our economy and it is part of our economic infrastructure,” Negusse said.
The summit also highlighted partnerships between schools, employers and nonprofit organizations across South King County, including Tukwila Promise, apprenticeship expansion efforts and workforce development programs tied to Highline College, Green River College and the Workforce Development Council of Seattle King County.
Student participants also spoke about the importance of mentorship and access to career exploration opportunities. Highline High School senior Alex Nunez said programs such as the Workforce Discovery Lab helped him better understand available resources and career pathways.
“I feel like I have a great support system with everyone around me,” Nunez said. “I know that I have people I can reach out to.”
Video
Below is an edited video of the event, as filmed by Scott Schaefer (running time 1 hour, 39 minutes):
