Terry DavidWhen Houston furniture icon Jim “Mattress Mack” McIngvale donated 15,000 square feet of showroom space in 2020, he helped launch WorkTexas—a vocational training program that could become a national template for workforce development. Co-founded by education reformer Mike Feinberg, WorkTexas leverages over 50 funding sources and 200 employer partnerships to provide free training in trades ranging from welding to medical assistance.
The program’s success stems from its unique financial model, combining federal Workforce Innovation funds, state dollars through the Texas Workforce Commission, local grants, and private philanthropy. Students rarely pay anything, with WorkTexas staff helping them navigate the bureaucratic maze of available funding. “If someone is unemployed or underemployed, there is an equivalent of a Pell grant for trades,” Feinberg explains. This funding diversity creates resilience—when one source fluctuates, others compensate.
Early results validate the approach. WorkTexas reports 88% completion rates for adult programs, with graduates earning an average $23 per hour after a year of employment. The program maintains contact with alumni for five years, tracking not just job placement but retention and advancement.
Success stories illustrate the program’s impact. Jacob Martinez transformed from pandemic-laid-off retail worker to Houston Astros HVAC technician earning $60,000 annually with full benefits. “WorkTexas gave me the skills and confidence to go out on my own path,” Martinez says. A female construction graduate reached six-figure management earnings within 18 months. A building maintenance trainee won Camden Living’s national excellence award. These outcomes reflect WorkTexas’s employer-centric approach, where companies like TRIO Electric directly shape curriculum to ensure graduates possess immediately applicable skills.
The model appears replicable beyond Houston. Austin launched a similar apartment-maintenance program in 2024, with Camden property management company spearheading the effort alongside the Texas Apartment Association and local Goodwill. ResponsiveEd, which operates Premier High School at the Gallery Furniture location, plans expansion across its 100-plus Texas and Arkansas campuses. While McIngvale’s celebrity status and position as a top Houston advertiser provide unique advantages for recruitment and community buy-in, Feinberg remains optimistic about scalability: “Every community has someone like Mack who is a connector or local celebrity who could play that role if the community so chose.”
WorkTexas represents Feinberg’s evolution from his KIPP charter school days of promoting college-for-all. After discovering that only 50% of KIPP Houston alumni graduated from college—with many others succeeding in trades or struggling with debt—he recognized the need for alternative pathways. “College prep should be in all schools, but college prep does not need to mean college for all,” he explains. WorkTexas serves that “other 50%” through practical training tied directly to employment outcomes rather than just certificate completion.
