CALA News & Views | Issue 54 | Impact

Career Fairs and Workforce Events To connect students and job seekers with our member organizations, CALA hosted and supported several career-focused events. In Sacramento, the Hillsdale Job Center Senior Living Career Fair introduced job seekers to opportunities with member companies such as Sunrise Senior Living, Carlton Senior Living and Ivy Living . Positions promoted ranged from caregivers to human resources professionals and culinary staff. In October, CALA hosted its first Virtual Workforce Symposium, bringing together members, educators and workforce leaders to collaborate and share workforce trends and data as well as CALA member career pathway programs for students. We learned about members who are partnering with community colleges to bring non-credit classes to their residents and received an update on the Master Plan for Aging. This event served as the springboard for a larger in-person symposium in 2026 in partnership with Argentum.

Expanding CALA’s Reach Through Instagram Earlier this year, CALA launched an Instagram account, @calavoiceofal, to connect directly with scholarship applicants through colleges, career centers, student clubs and veteran organizations. Since then, our audience has grown to 170 followers, and we’ve maintained a steady rhythm of about 10 posts per month. Follow us! Culinary content has been our top performer – highlighting community college students visiting member communities and spotlighting the talented chefs who bring dining in senior living to life. In July, our feature on Executive Chef Jorden Crozier of Oakmont of Fair Oaks, who won the Professional Chef Challenge at the California State Fair, reached more than 1,400 accounts! As we continue building our presence, CALA will keep showcasing members who are advocating for seniors, collaborating with colleges and sharing their expertise at events like CALA’s Elevate Conferences .

Connections with Colleges Through Handshake To expand awareness of senior living career opportunities, CALA’s workforce development team began posting member job openings on Handshake this past July. Handshake is a widely used online career platform that connects students with jobs and internships across community colleges and universities. Our initial outreach focused on member communities that already had a Handshake profile, current job openings and listed pay ranges. We identified 11 member companies across the state that met these criteria and posted positions ranging from caregiver, human resources and sales to activities and culinary (cook, server, dishwasher). The response was strong: 309 students from multiple schools applied to 25 of the 29 openings. If your community is on Handshake but not yet posting, or if you’d like help setting up an account, please email Denise Brandt. By working together, we can connect more students with rewarding careers in senior living.

Looking Ahead Looking toward the close of 2025 and into 2026, CALA will continue to strengthen our workforce efforts. These initiatives demonstrate the shared commitment of our members to cultivate a strong, future-ready workforce for senior living. By supporting scholarships, championing career pathways and celebrating the voices of our members, CALA is building the foundation for the next generation of leaders in our field.

CALA NEWS & VIEWS I ISSUE 54 | NOVEMBER 2025 24