Blog post: February 25, 2026

In the spirit of Black History Month, we are thrilled to spotlight a remarkable leader within our Agency: Jessica Grimes, Executive Director at the Employment Training Panel (ETP).

We had the opportunity to learn more about Director Grimes’ inspiring journey, impactful work, and thoughts on leadership and legacy.

In the following Q&A, Director Grimes shares insights that we believe will resonate with and motivate all of us.

What inspired you to take on the role of Executive Director at ETP?

My career can be succinctly summarized as finding ways to reduce poverty. I think because I adopt Josiah Royce’s notion of the “beloved community,” I am always focused on thinking about programs from an abundance mentality and how we can share access with more people to change their career trajectory so that they and their families thrive. I’ve never thought that I could do this alone and sought careers to have direct impact on people with complex lives who need dynamic, nimble training systems that help them escape poverty.

At first, I thought that education could operate as a panacea in solving all barriers, sort of akin to the idea that has often been quoted: “education is the great equalizer.” However, through my years of first being an English professor followed by my experience in college administration focused on career education and workforce development, I learned that any training or education program must also have a very intentional equity lens at its foundation to truly meet the diverse workforce needs of people where they are, and when I learned about ETP, I became inspired by how funds were tailored to solve skills gaps, boost wages, and provide opportunities for career advancement in a pragmatic, tangible approach.

I remember reading through a strategic plan and being very intrigued that ETP took the time to think about how they developed their programs. At the time, they were working with CivicMakers to institutionalize a human-centered design, and it showed in programs like the Social Entrepreneurs for Economic Development. Frankly, I was impressed because I could pinpoint the throughline that proved why ETP consistently delivers great results through employers providing training to upskill or skill workers for better opportunities, and to be honest, I’m still impressed.

Can you briefly describe what the road was like to get to where you are professionally, including any challenges you faced and how you navigated them?

I have a dear friend who says “you can’t be what you can’t see,” meaning that if one doesn’t see oneself represented in careers with mid- to high-wages, it’s very challenging to pursue what seems to be exclusive. I had a similar journey—in college, I chose education because my older sister was a teacher, and her proximity to me—that is she modeled a path that was accessible to me, and so it became possible to me. I wish I could say that subsequent career choices went as smoothly, but they didn’t.

When I started off as an instructor, I realized quickly that I needed to gain the trust of more seasoned folks in order to be mentored, and I was lucky enough to have incredible mentors and sponsors, but there came a time when I moved from the classroom to administration. That decision I made with trepidation—I no longer had a clear roadmap. The position was new, and I was learning as I was doing, an experience that can be disorienting, but I found that there are other ways to gain experience and competence, and that is through research and reading. Rarely is one tasked with something truly new. Somewhere someone has done it, and usually there’s a book or something that shortens the learning curve. I have to be honest that when I didn’t have an immediate role model who could show me the ropes, I’ve looked to experts in books.

As a Black American woman, I’ve been keenly aware that for some of the positions I’ve occupied, I didn’t see a lot of people who looked at me, and sometimes, I’ve been in conversations where the silent power dynamics were designed to put me in my place—that is to silence my voice. That can be a very disempowering feeling to know you are an expert but not perceived as one because of your gender or race, but early on in my career I have adopted an offensive optimism that is almost impregnable.

I know that I have found—and am pursuing my purpose, and being grounded in that knowledge helps me to courageously speak and to show up.

What impact do you hope to have on your organization?

My primary goal is to always build up leaders, and we’ve been intentional about providing professional development that will support their career goals, and we’re planning to start a mentoring program. Also, I’d love to find more funding streams to increase ETP’s capacity for more training programs that help employers upskill employees in innovative technologies, such as AI and automation.

What advice would you give to young Black professionals early in their career?

Know your worth by investing in your continuous improvement and development. Also, try to surround yourself with someone whom you admire whom you can emulate, someone who knows your dreams and aspirations to keep you accountable, and someone whom you’re bringing along.

Black History Month Panel

Director Grimes recently participated in a panel featured on KGET 17 of local and state leaders to reflect on Black history and how it continues to shape opportunity, equity, and access. Here are some clips of the Director sharing a bit about the importance of honoring Black History Month and creating development programs that meet people where they are, like California’s Cradle-to-Career and the Master Plan for Career Education.

Moderated by Natesha “T” Johnson, Executive Director of Entrepreneurship and Workforce Development at Bakersfield College, panelists included Michael Bowers of Centric Health, Dr. Stacy Pfluger of Bakersfield College, Jessica Grimes of the California Employment Training Panel, and Traco Matthews of Kern Family Health Care.