{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["http://hultgren.house.gov//newsroom/press-releases/hultgren-urges-va-secretary-mcdonald-to-recruit-needed-medical-professionals", "Hultgren Urges VA Secretary McDonald to Recruit Needed Medical Professionals from Community Colleges", "2014-09-08", "2014", "2014-09", "Republican", "House", "IL", "Randy Hultgren", "H001059", "hultgren.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Washington, DC \u2013 U.S. Representative Randy Hultgren (IL-14) today applauded Secretary Robert McDonald of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) for unveiling a new national recruitment effort to bring medical professionals to the VA and provide timely and quality health care for our nation\u2019s veterans. Rep. Hultgren also urged Sec. McDonald to expand his recruitment efforts to community colleges which train more than half of the country\u2019s entire health care workforce.\n\u201cI applaud your recent initiative with higher education institutions aimed at recruiting the best and the brightest health care professionals to the Department of Veterans Affairs to enhance and expand care for veterans,\u201d Rep. Hultgren\u2019s letter to Sec. McDonald reads. \u201cIn this vein and as you leverage your relationships with academia, I want to also urge you to reach out to and form partnerships with local community colleges as well...By 2020, there will be 1.2 million expected job openings for registered nurses, 370,000 openings for licensed practical nurses, 105,000 openings for dental hygienists, and 121,000 projected jobs for emergency medical technicians. Many, if not most, of these jobs will be filled by professionals who received their initial training and sub-baccalaureate health care credentials at community colleges.\n\u201cAs you move forward with your recruitment initiative\u2026I am confident you will find highly qualified, dedicated, and motivated individuals who are eager to care for and serve those who have served and protected our nation.\u201d\nTo coordinate, develop and promote workforce knowledge and skills training for high school students and recent graduates looking to enter the workforce in areas such as healthcare, Rep. Hultgren has launched a Higher Education Advisory Committee (HEAC) comprised of community college presidents of the following schools that serve the 14th District: Elgin Community College, McHenry Community College, Waubonsee Community College, College of DuPage, College of Lake County, Kishwaukee Community College, and Joliet Junior College.\nRead the full letter here: https://hultgren.house.gov/sites/hultgren.house.gov/files/2014-09-08_VA_Letter_CommunityCollege_Outreach.pdf\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["http://hultgren.house.gov//newsroom/press-releases/hultgren-urges-va-secretary-mcdonald-to-recruit-needed-medical-professionals"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.420286949723959, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}