There’s a moment in nearly every conversation I have on The Found Podcast when a theme quietly emerges.

This time, it was one word:

Ecosystem.

When I sat down with Amy Lasack, Vice President of Business and Community Solutions at Northeast Iowa Community College, I expected to talk about workforce training and education programs. What I didn’t expect was a conversation that reframed how I think about learning, leadership, and community itself.

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Workforce Isn’t a Ladder — It’s a Living System

For decades, many of us were taught a predictable path:

Graduate → go to school → get a job → stay there.

But Amy shared something powerful:

Workforce development isn’t linear. It’s an ecosystem.

Students, employers, families, educators, and communities all influence one another. Remove one piece, and the whole system struggles.

Community colleges sit at the center of that ecosystem, not just offering classes, but listening carefully to evolving needs and building pathways that flex with real life.

Because real life rarely allows neat timelines.

People have families. Bills. Career pivots. Unexpected turns.

Education today must meet people where they are, not where systems expect them to be.

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Learning Has Changed and That’s a Good Thing

Amy described how NICC is rethinking education through:

• short-term certifications
• flexible “on-and-off ramps” into degrees
• hands-on learning environments
• AI education and workforce conversations
• immersive technology and experiential learning

The goal isn’t just knowledge.

It’s engagement.

As Amy put it, few learners today want to sit and listen for 50 minutes straight, and education must evolve alongside how humans actually learn.

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Exposure Creates Possibility

One of my favorite moments came when Amy described helping students connect classroom learning to local employers.

Many young people only dream about careers they’ve seen before — on television or within their families.

But what happens when they discover companies in their own backyard building aerospace components or advanced manufacturing technology?

Possibility expands.

And sometimes opportunity isn’t missing…it’s just unseen.

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The Courage to Say Yes

Amy shared a leadership philosophy that echoed something I’ve heard repeatedly on this podcast:

Say yes to the things that intrigue you but scare you a little.

From international travel opportunities to public speaking invitations, growth often lives just beyond comfort.

Not because success is guaranteed — but because learning always is.

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The Lesson That Changed Everything

Near the end of our conversation, Amy shared a deeply personal story about caring for her father during his battle with cancer.

What she found during that season reshaped her priorities:

You never get time back.

Leadership isn’t only about professional success. It’s about how we show up for the people who matter most.

It’s about choosing presence over productivity when life asks us to.

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What I Found in This Conversation

This episode reminded me that communities thrive when institutions listen, when leaders stay curious, and when people remain open to change.

Education isn’t confined to classrooms.

Leadership isn’t confined to titles.

And growth rarely follows a straight line.

Sometimes the most meaningful progress happens when we simply keep showing up…together.

This episode is a beautiful reminder that growth happens when communities listen and when we allow ourselves to evolve along the way.

If you’re a leader, parent, business owner, or lifelong learner, this one will stay with you.

Listen now to Episode 241 of The Found Podcast with Molly Knuth and my guest Amy Lasack wherever you get your podcasts.