For years, employers have complained of a shortage of applicants with the specialized skills they need. Community colleges have tried to oblige by wading through an alphabet soup of industry certifications to figure out exactly what those skills are.
A new, nationwide consortium is trying to narrow the gap between the skills companies need and those students are learning with five new training programs that colleges will soon be able to customize and replicate.
Geared toward out-of-work adults, the one-year certificates are in high-demand areas of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, the STEM fields. The National STEM Consortium, an alliance of 10 community colleges in nine states, outlined the program this week at the annual meeting here of the American Association of Community Colleges.
The U.S. Department of Labor awarded the consortium $20-million to develop the program, which will focus initially on composites, cybertechnology, electric-vehicle technology, environmental technology, and mechatronics.
The curricula, which campuses can customize for their local needs, will be available to any college free online and will include instructor guides and tips on how to set up a lab.
Although some educators have questioned whether employers are really trying hard enough, or paying high-enough wages, to attract qualified workers, the manufacturing sector alone reports that tens of thousands of jobs are going unfilled because it can’t find enough people with the right training.
The one-year certificate programs, which require students to attend full time and give preference to veterans, are aimed at getting displaced workers back on the job as quickly as possible. Students can earn industry certifications, which are required by many employers, along with a certificate from the college.
Instead of taking developmental courses before starting the program, students brush up on math, reading, and computer skills as part of their technical courses. A student working on a design flaw on a jet wing would learn how to apply mathematical principles like the Pythagorean Theorem to create a brace with the proper angles that would make the plane safe to fly. Another student might practice problem-solving and communications skills while responding to a mock fire on an assembly line.
Cooperating on Curricula and Costs
Training workers for local industries has been an integral part of community colleges’ mission for years. And a perennial issue is who pays for the training. Colleges complain that many companies that used to provide their employees with in-house training are shirking their responsibility and expecting colleges to do it for them. High-tech equipment and labs are expensive, especially if you’re trying to replicate a state-of-the-art oil rig or airplane.
Companies say that they wouldn’t have to do so much training if college curricula were more in line with their needs.
So programs like the STEM Consortium, which bring the two sides together to align curricula and training, and to share responsibilities and costs, are considered key to bridging whatever gap exists.
Colleges seeking to integrate relevant industry credentials into their courses face a confusing array of specifications across dozens of industries. The consortium sorts through the clutter, creating curricula that incorporate specific skills that a broad swath of companies have agreed are important. Faculty members designing the curricula tour plants and interview employers. National and local governing boards check to make sure the skills being taught are the ones local industries need.
Nearly three-quarters of students at Anne Arundel Community College’s cybertechnology program need remedial help, but they get lessons in math, critical thinking, and communication in a “STEM readiness” course that teaches the context of the field they’re studying.
“They get to start right in on the fun stuff,” says the program’s coordinator, Kim Law, while they brush up on their math and reading skills.
