At AdventHealth’s Step Into the Future Career Experience in September 2025 in Daytona Beach, students from Volusia and Flagler public schools got a hands-on look – literally – at careers in healthcare.

The immersive experience offered students numerous encounters with clinical and non-clinical healthcare roles, including using a virtual reality headset to perform hands-on CPR on a CPR dummy.

Youngsters learning CPR in a healthcare career fair setting?

Lightcast, a labor market analytics firm, reported in its 2024 Talent Attraction Scorecard  that Florida was the number one state for attracting and developing a skilled workforce for the third consecutive year.

However, the Florida Chamber Foundation cites Florida’s employment “talent gap,” and the Foundation’s Future of Work Initiative says that “nearly 72% of Florida’s workforce leaders report struggling to find qualified talent, signaling a statewide workforce crisis.”

The talent gap challenge “is immediate,” says Corrie Melton, the Florida Chamber Foundation’s Vice President of Talent Development for the Future of Work.

One focus of the foundation’s Florida 2030 Blueprint, which says one million net new jobs will be needed to accommodate expected population growth over the next four years, is “improving Florida’s talent pipeline for a better workforce.”

One way of achieving that goal is pursuing what the chamber calls the “cradle-to-career” concept, an idea embraced by numerous employers and organizations.

“The cradle-to-career continuum recognizes workforce development begins long before someone enters the workforce,” says Melton, who attended the Florida Chamber Foundation’s 2026 Florida Learners to Earners Workforce Solution Summit.

She cites three takeaways from that summit: “First, employers recognize they must be active partners in developing talent, not simply consumers of it. Across every industry, business leaders are stepping up to work more closely with educators to help students understand career opportunities and gain the skills employers need.

“Second, workforce development begins much earlier than many people realize. Early learning, kindergarten readiness, and third grade reading proficiency are not just education priorities – they are economic priorities that influence the strength of Florida’s future workforce.”

Third, “building Florida’s future workforce is a shared responsibility” requiring collaboration among business, education and community partners.

“The cradle-to-career concept is exactly the kind of long-view thinking workforce development needs,” says Truleigh Sargent, AdventHealth’s East Florida Division Workforce Development Specialist. “It does not mean asking young children to choose a career. It means recognizing the future workforce is shaped long before someone applies for a job. Literacy, confidence, exposure, adult relationships, career awareness, belonging and access to clear next steps all matter. We cannot wait until senior year, college graduation or job-posting day.”

“Volusia County is already feeling the pressure of a widening talent gap, and the numbers underscore why early, intentional workforce development matters,” says Kristin Weiss, President and CEO of the Daytona Regional Chamber of Commerce. “According to the Florida Scorecard, by 2030 our community will need a net 19,403 new jobs just to keep pace with growth and employer demand, a target that cannot be met by focusing only on college graduates and adult retraining.

“Aerospace, healthcare, advanced manufacturing and skilled trades are experiencing tight labor markets – too few workers have the specific skills, certifications and readiness these industries require. That reality is driving the shift toward a true ‘cradle-to-career’ approach: recognizing that the future aerospace engineer, nurse, machinist or electrician begins as a kindergartner who needs strong early literacy, exposure to career pathways and consistent support throughout their education.”

“A ‘cradle-to-career continuum’ is really about walking alongside children and families through every stage of life,” says Kymberly Cook, Chief Operating Officer and Executive Vice President of the Children’s Home Society of Florida, a nonprofit whose mission includes ending generational poverty. “Success in the workforce at age 22 doesn’t happen overnight. It’s shaped by experiences that begin much earlier: entering kindergarten ready to learn, having stable support at home, access to physical and behavioral healthcare, and caring adults who help navigate challenges along the way.”

And how does the cradle to career ethic translate to boots on the ground?

Joshua Scott, assistant principal at Matanzas High School in Flagler County, has overseen the school’s Diploma Plus program since its inception two years ago. The program’s “personalized learning” focus provides “opportunities for every student to explore, expand and succeed in high-interest fields or advanced curricula that are relevant to them,” Scott says.

“Under Superintendent Lashakia Moore, we have made a concentrated effort to alter the public perception of seeing the high school diploma as the finish line. The elementary schools all have Programs of Study, where students participate in hands-on lessons that focus on careers, and guest speakers get students excited and engaged about different career fields.”

Middle school Programs of Study “deepen connections between students and career fields so they are able to make informed decisions about which high school to attend, because each high school offers several unique programs. In high school, students ideally spend three years in their chosen Diploma Plus program, where they have opportunities to get career certifications and access advanced curriculum that will serve them beyond graduation.”

Not all talent pipeline development is focused on the cradle-to-career perspective.

The Economic Development Commission of Florida’s Space Coast released its Workforce Intelligence Report this year. The report anonymously quoted a director of manufacturing operations at a global aerospace and defense company in Brevard County: “The pace of innovation in aerospace and advanced manufacturing on the Space Coast is outpacing the pipeline of skilled workers. We need more training programs that are aligned with real-time industry standards, especially in avionics, composites and welding, to stay competitive and continue growing.”

EDC President and CEO Lynda Weatherman requested the EDC board 10 years ago “to get involved in workforce training. That is almost unheard of in our business.”

The report sought feedback on workforce needs from Boeing, Northrop Gruman, SpaceX and other aerospace, defense and advanced manufacturing companies in Brevard County. One example of the report’s conclusions: Eastern Florida State College, which has four Brevard campuses, has a “stakeholder role” that entails aligning its vocational and certification programs with those area industry needs.

Weiss cites such Daytona Chamber initiatives as its Readers to Leaders early literacy program, its Level Up: Professional Skills Summit, and its new Manufacturing & Technology Day, premiering this fall, as efforts to “deepen employer‑education partnerships and align classroom learning with real‑world careers. Our role is to convene the right partners, keep the focus on long‑term talent, and help ensure that by 2030, those 19,403 net new jobs are matched by 19,403 prepared people ready to fill them.”

Scott says Flagler County schools “work with businesses and community members to understand what skills are needed as demand changes, so we can adapt our instructional methods to meet that demand.” The Flagler Education Foundation stages an annual career expo, partners with local chambers of commerce and brings business owners, elected officials and community leaders to schools to interact with students and “see how we are preparing the future leaders of Flagler County.”

“Business leaders have a unique opportunity to be part of an ecosystem of support and ensure they’re going to receive the talent they need to be successful,” says Cook of the Children’s Home Society. “Whether it’s through partnerships, mentorship, volunteerism or investment, they can help create opportunities that change the trajectory of a child’s life, who will one day work in their office.”