FORT WORTH, Texas — Demand for skilled healthcare professionals is at an all-time high and rising. Tarrant County College brought together more than 50 regional hospital executives, educators and public health leaders this morning to explore solutions and keep patient services ahead of North Texas’ rapid growth.
The working breakfast, Trailblazing the Future of Healthcare: Hospitals and TCC – Expanding Care, Expanding Talent, is part of the TCC Foundation’s commitment to strengthening the link between education and employment.
TCC Trinity River President Sean Madison said in opening remarks that every health system expansion, every new service line, every innovation in care depends on people — people trained, inspired and equipped to make a difference. “That’s what we build together.”
David Saenz, senior education advisor to the Mayor’s Council for Workforce and Education, added that the power of education and industry partnering will fill the high-demand healthcare pipeline for years to come.
“The people in this room are that bridge between what we should do, what we can do and move us to what we will do,” he said. “You bring your own knowledge and support from your organizations. We can’t prepare our students without industry partners. And make no mistake, when we talk about pathways and filling workforce pipelines, our future is in the classroom right now.”
Major health systems — Baylor Scott & White Health, Cook Children’s Health Care System, JPS Health Network, Medical City Healthcare, Methodist Health, Moncrief Cancer Institute, Texas Health Resources — are scaling up to boost the region’s medical capabilities.
Now they need skilled talent.
TCC says it’s ready for the challenge. It annually trains more than 1,400 students in nursing, respiratory care, radiologic technology, medical assisting and 24 other high-demand fields. The College maintains a 95% licensure pass, 93% job placement and 91% student success rate. Most Trailblazers have jobs before they graduate.
Since 2020, more than 1,800 TCC-educated nurses have joined hospitals and clinics across the region — a powerful response to exploding demand. With a projected shortage of 15,000 nurses over the next five years, the College is building a foundation to keep North Texas strong.
In a video presented at the breakfast, Texas Health Harris Hospital Southwest President Ajith Pai called TCC graduates “compassionate caregivers who have a connection to purpose.”
Echoing that sentiment in the same video, TCC alumnus Charles Williams, president of Fort Worth’s Baylor Scott & White All Saints Medical Center, praised the College’s development of courses and pathways that connect graduates directly to employers.
Beyond nursing, the region faces an urgent need for experts in every corner of care. Industry attendees emphasized a demand for imaging and radiology technicians, respiratory therapists, scrub technicians, phlebotomists, anesthesiology technicians, long-term care administrators and sterile processing technicians. TCC offers a program to address every one of these fields.
TCC Chancellor Elva LeBlanc said TCC is leading the way in preparing these professionals.
“But we can’t do it alone — and we don’t have to. This is the power of partnership,” she said. “When education and industry come together with a shared purpose, we do more than fill jobs. We change lives and build a better future for us all.”
Partnerships with universities, medical schools, hospitals, clinics and healthcare industry leaders create seamless avenues from TCC classrooms to careers. Shared simulations, clinical placements, and faculty and practitioner collaborations should ensure that Trailblazers are prepared.
A working session explored three areas of additional opportunity:
- Strengthening curriculum to help students develop the interpersonal skills that patients and employers value.
- Expanding work-based learning through apprenticeships, mentorships and summer programming.
- Growing site-based instruction to boost training and cross-training capacity.
Student ambassadors Eric Joyce in nursing and Marissa Sanchez, a nuclear medicine technology student, welcomed guests and shared why they value their TCC education.
Eric, formerly in the U.S. Navy, chose to pursue nursing after a successful finance career in New York City. He returned to Fort Worth, where he trained with the Navy, to pursue nursing and return to a life of service.
“TCC is special,” he said. “They don’t just teach healthcare here. They live healthcare. We have advanced labs. We have experienced, qualified and accomplished educators and real clinical experiences that help grow student nurses into the new nurses North Texas needs.”
Marissa, a TCC Foundation scholarship recipient, told industry partners that the firsthand training she’s receiving at their hospitals is second to none. “When I graduate, I’ll be prepared, confident and ready to serve.”
Grants and scholarships are fueling new Tarrant County College programs, work-based training and scholarships. A Texas Reskilling and Upskilling through Education (TRUE) grant is helping TCC meet employer demand for certified electrocardiogram, phlebotomy, patient care and pharmacy technicians. A grant from the U.S Economic Development Administration is growing the region’s biotech workforce. A U.S. Department of Labor investment (Partners in Advancing Talent in Healthcare) provides tuition assistance for low-income and first-generation Trailblazers, and a Nursing and Allied Health Professions Scholarship is available to students admitted to the College’s Associate of Applied Science program in nursing or an allied health offering.
“Today’s conversation is about the next step — deepening our partnerships, aligning our investments and expanding opportunities that connect our students to regional hospitals and our shared community,” Dr. Madison said. “Together we’re not just responding to workforce needs, we’re trailblazing the future of healthcare.”
Explore TCC’s health science offerings at www.tccd.edu/academics/find-your-pathway.
Celebrating 60 years of excellence and impact in 2025, Tarrant County College is one of the nation’s largest higher education institutions and offers the second-lowest tuition among Texas’ top 10 community colleges. With six campuses across Tarrant County, TCC provides accessible, high-quality learning opportunities for students of all ages and backgrounds.