San Antonio leaders say the city is positioning itself for the economy of the future with aggressive workforce development and job training in areas of cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, advanced manufacturing, robotics, energy, and biomedical work.
The discussion unfolded during a special live broadcast of The Source recorded at the Malú and Carlos Alvarez Theater at Texas Public Radio’s headquarters.
Alamo Colleges District Chancellor Dr. Mike Flores highlighted the Alamo Colleges’ long-standing role in local workforce development. For 80 years ACD has been “the largest provider of human capital development in our community,” Flores said.
He emphasized that the district’s model depends on collaboration among education, industry, and regional employers: “The ethos in our community and in our DNA is partnership,” Flores said, pointing to coordination with UT San Antonio, manufacturers such as Toyota, and major employment centers such as Port San Antonio.
Flores said the effort to prepare the local workforce is being scaled up through a major capital investment approved by voters.
In May of 2025 Bexar County voters approved the Alamo Colleges District’s $987 million bond proposition. With nearly 70% voter approval, this measure marked the passage of the largest bond in ACD’s history. The plan includes four new locations tied to employment hubs, including Port San Antonio and the South Texas Medical Center, as well as expansion tied to growth areas such as Brooks and the Stone Oak/North Central corridor, according to Flores.
Leslie Cantu, chair of Workforce Solutions Alamo and vice president of administration at Toyotetsu, said they are providing a front door for people trying to navigate a shifting labor market — whether teenagers seeking their first entry point or adult workers looking to “upskill” or change careers entirely.
She said the organization helps residents interpret labor market data, identify “demand occupations,” and connect to training providers, degrees, certificates, and “micro-credentialing” options intended to move families toward “lifelong career opportunities.”
UT San Antonio President Taylor Eighmy emphasized the connection between Alamo Colleges and UTSA, portraying the community college-to-university pipeline as central to the region’s workforce strategy. “Where Mike goes, I go. Where I go, Mike goes,” Eighmy said, pointing to ACD President Flores and calling the institutions “inextricably linked.” Eighmy noted that a significant share of UTSA’s undergraduates come from community colleges and said roughly half of that transfer cohort is from Alamo Colleges.
Eighmy also pointed out that educational attainment is a competitive factor when San Antonio tries to recruit and retain employers. As the city competes with markets such as Charlotte, Denver, and others, he said, companies weigh “the educational attainment of our workforce” in deciding where to locate and grow.
He added that UTSA pays close attention to the “demand signal” from employers — “the Toyotas of the world…or the USAAs of the world” — and that the university has been refining programs so students graduate with “relevant degrees” and a pathway to “high wage, high salary” work.
Port San Antonio President and CEO Jim Perschbach said he regularly fields questions from companies scouting San Antoino and they routinely ask about the depth of the local workforce, as well as the region’s ability to keep advancing workforce development.
Perschbach described Port San Antonio as “fundamentally an aerospace and defense research campus,” along with emerging opportunities like “advanced air mobility,” sometimes described as “air taxis,” drones, and automated flight systems. He said this could become a regional advantage if San Antonio can integrate aerospace expertise with cyber, electronics, and AI.
Perschbach also pointed to the area’s concentration of cyber-related work as a key economic asset, describing it broadly as cyber, intelligence, and electronic warfare talent clustered around Port San Antonio and nearby military installations. He argued that the city’s edge comes from mixing disciplines that don’t always work together elsewhere: applying cybersecurity, detection technologies, artificial intelligence, and augmented reality to complex aviation and mobility challenges.
Throughout the event, panelists repeated that San Antonio is unique in the partnerships that have been forged between institutions like ACD and job providers. In the discussion they shared a theme: that the economic future they described will require coordinated institutions to translate fast-moving technological change into accessible pathways for residents across ages and backgrounds.
Guests:
Mike Flores — Chancellor of the Alamo Colleges District
Leslie Cantu — Chair of Workforce Solutions Alamo and vice president of administration at Toyotatetsu
Taylor Eighmy — President of the University of Texas at San Antonio
Jim Perschbach — President and CEO of Port San Antonio
This episode was be recorded in front of a live audience on Wednesday, January 14, 2026, at the Malú and Carlos Alvarez Theater at Texas Public Radio.
