Workforce Connections visitors can get help from Darrell Guzman, youth development practitioner, left, and business consultant Nicole VanNelson.
(Gary Herron/ Rio Rancho Observer)

New Mexico Workforce Connection, which recently opened an office in the City of Vision, is a comprehensive one-stop career center.

It provides an opportunity for anyone looking for a job or career to learn their options and find a path to their goal. Clients can be as young as 14 to senior citizens — even the elderly.

The Rio Rancho NM Workforce Connection affiliate site is sharing office space with the Rio Rancho Observer at 409 NM 528, Suite 101, about 50 yards north of the AMREP building.

Individuals can drop by Monday through Friday, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. They can also call the office at 891-7161 or send an email to [email protected] — or follow it on social media: Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

“We at Workforce Connection are a very big partner network — organizations coming together,” said Joy Forehand, central region operations manager. “We can assist individuals seeking immediate employment or individuals seeking a career path and needing more education.”

Plus, “We work closely with employers to provide them qualified applicants,” Forehand said. “We work with a variety of employers, ranging from health care to education to IT, and tech to manufacturing, so it’s pretty diverse.”

This isn’t the first time Workforce Connection has been in the City of Vision. Six years ago, it had an office on Quantum Road, but that site moved to Bernalillo.

Workforce Connection has five offices in the central region: the biggest one is in Albuquerque, with the others in Rio Rancho, Bernalillo, Los Lunas and Moriarty.

Forehand said Workforce Connection serves people starting at age 14 with the youth program, all the way to 100, in the unusual event that a centenarian came in for help.

“We’re seeing people working longer and longer,” she said. “It’s an interesting dynamic; we serve everyone.”

The offices contain several informative resource guides, including the free 72-page New Mexico Career Guide. It contains a wealth of information, especially on pages 9-18. On those pages, you can get help in choosing a career, based on education level.

With less than a high school diploma, the best prospects are for jobs in landscaping and grounds-keeping; as oil, gas and mining service operators; as home health aides; as institution and cafeteria cooks; and as parts salespeople.

With a diploma or GED, the best prospects are in corrections; as social and human services assistants; medical secretaries; and as industrial machinery mechanics.

For those with some college, and/or an associate’s degree, there is a need for registered nurses, preschool non-special education teachers, dental assistants, emergency medical technicians and paramedics, and customer-support specialists.

And, with a bachelor’s degree as a starting point, jobs are as systems software developers; computer systems analysts; civil engineers; child, family and school/social workers; and teachers.

Each category explains what those professionals do, what the work environment is like, how much needs to be learned and what the future job prospects are in New Mexico.