< Previous28 WORKFORCE 2024 L ooking for a metric by which to calibrate a workforce’s technical skills? The SkillsUSA Championships could be meaningful to any company’s site selection matrix. Based in Leesburg, Virginia, SkillsUSA is a student-led partnership of education and industry representing nearly 380,000 career and technical education (CTE) students and teachers from middle schools, high schools and college/ postsecondary institutions. Nearly 298,000 members are from the high school level. An estimated 15,000 students, teachers, education leaders and representatives from 650 national corporations, trade associations, businesses and labor unions were expected to participate in the organization’s National Leadership & Skills Conference (NLSC) in Atlanta in June 2023. A highlight of the week is the SkillsUSA Championships, career competition events showcasing the best career and technical education students in the nation. In 2022, there were nearly 5,200 contestants in 108 separate events. The 2023 competition featured 6,094 contestants in 110 categories, competing for more than 1,250 gold, silver and bronze medals in such disciplines as welding fabrication, diesel equipment technology, CNC 2-, 3- and 5-axis Their Time Is NOW: A SkillsUSA Champions Scorecard by ADAM BRUNS STEM SKILLS The SkillsUSA National Leadership & Skills Conference brought around 15,000 career and technical education students, teachers, education leaders and representatives to Atlanta in June 2023. Photo courtesy of SkillsUSA This story is adapted from an online report originally published by Site Selection magazine in July 2023.30 WORKFORCE 2024 milling programming, digital cinema production, medical terminology and automated manufacturing technology. Over $36 million from industry and education is invested in the SkillsUSA Championships, where the equipment and materials include 2,000 computers, 12,500 bricks and 1,500 blocks, 60+ stoves and ovens, 25+ refrigerators, 100+ welders, 50+ manufacturing machines and complete laboratories for machining, welding, auto repair and painting. The competition area covered the equivalent of 31 football fields or 41 acres. And the event itself was estimated to have a $20 million impact on Atlanta. So who won? We downloaded all the medalists from the NLSC’s results page and sorted by state (see chart right). The list of top-performing states hews closely to some recent Site Selection state rankings, with the top five states all in the South and the top three of Texas, North Carolina and Georgia accounting for a number of Governors Cup, Prosperity Cup and Business Climate Rankings victories in the past A team competes in the SkillsUSA Championships welding fabrication category, where the college/postsecondary competition was won by Dallin Cardon, Noah Vergara and Kenneth Bell of Utah State University Eastern. All photos courtesy of SkillsUSA TOP 10 STATES BY MEDALISTS 2023 SKILLSUSA NATIONAL LEADERSHIP & SKILLS CONFERENCE STATE MEDALISTS Texas 59 North Carolina 46 Georgia 44 Tennessee 42 Oklahoma 37 Massachusetts 32 California 31 Utah 27 Florida 23 Pennsylvania 2232 WORKFORCE 2024 several years. While those rankings are based on different sets of data, all have company growth at their heart. CTE leadership in Texas can be traced in part to the work of the Texas Workforce Commission. Among other programs, the TWC has awarded around 335 Jobs and Education for Texas (JET) grants averaging $280,000 apiece. for the Texas Workforce Commission. “We have traveled the state doing check signing presentations,” confirmed Aaron Demerson, the TWC commissioner representing employers, in an interview. “In rural communities we’re seeing students and employers come together, involved in the curriculum, so when those students graduate, if they’re not going into a 2-year or 4-year college, they’re walking right into a job or career. And they can continue getting an education too.” Complementing Skills With Character One region taking CTE skills leadership seriously is Pickens County in rural Upstate South Carolina, where the notion of the Scholar Technician® has been trademarked, and where the Pickens County Career and Technology Center boasts 1,800 students, a waiting list of several hundred and a bevy of awards. It’s no coincidence, then, that the Pickens County Commerce Park that opened nearly 20 years ago as of mid- 2023 had also filled to capacity. “A key ingredient we’ve had is our workforce development effort,” Ray Farley, executive director of Alliance Pickens, told me during a visit there in summer 2023. It was an effort launched during the recession, when Farley’s team noticed the companies that kept performing well had cross-trained staff, “so there was a nimbleness in the organization and on the manufacturing A demonstration competition in CNC 5-axis milling programming featured these high school medalists: Silver-Xavian Gilbert, Pickens County Career and Technology Center (South Carolina); Gold- Thomas Blake, Diman RVTHS (Massachusetts); and Bronze-Noe Diaz, Streamwood High School (Illinois). Back row, l. to r.: College/ Postsecondary medalists—Silver-Cody Russell, York Technical College (South Carolina); Gold-Arik Edstrom, Manatee Technical College (Florida); and Bronze-Jacob Golden, Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology (Pennsylvania). Photo courtesy of SkillsUSA34 WORKFORCE 2024 floor,” he said. “We prepared for it. We experimented with a few things. One that bears fruit for us today is to invest in developing technical skills in our young people. We work it, live it and drink it. Pickens County has the state’s No. 1 countywide school district, and No. 1 technical high school. Those are not by accident.” Two young students from that school performed well in the SkillsUSA competition: Ryan Liner and Xavian Gilbert Ryan earned silver medals in 2-axis and 5-axis machining. “Ryan and Xavian are solid young men,” Farley told me later in the year. “Both have high character, work hard and are highly skilled at their craft. Both of these guys were 2023 Scholar Technician® of the Year finalists, with Ryan winning the title.” Competitions such as SkillsUSA are vital to Farley’s goals for his home territory, including celebrating accomplishments and trumpeting them to the public at large and to parents: “When our students compete against their peer groups around the region and country, they do very well,” Farley says. “We created a little PR firm in the office so every time a child did well in a competition we treated that technically competent child just like the quarterback who throws a touchdown on Friday night. That started the snowball rolling.” SkillsUSA exists to further such programs and with them, the individual careers of CTE students. No less a skills champion than Mike Rowe explains in a backgrounder from the organization: “The thing about SkillsUSA that’s so cool, and the reason that my foundation has supported it for years, is that it is deliberately focused on celebrating a skill,” Rowe has said. “Three million jobs right now exist in the trades and transportation and commerce. The skills gap is real. Training kids and getting them excited to do the jobs that exist ought to be job one.” Ray Farley can muster that excitement with some concrete numbers. “None of the guys in that photo are five-figure guys,” he says while looking at a photo of Scholar Technicians® on the wall at Alliance Pickens. Thanks to what they learned at Pickens County Career & Technology Center (and not at a college), “they are six-figure guys now.” One region taking CTE skills leadership seriously is Pickens County in rural Upstate South Carolina, where the Pickens County Career and Technology Center boasts 1,800 students, a waiting list of several hundred and a bevy of awards. Photos by authorSHORT-TERM CREDENTIALS WORKFORCE 2024 35 W e may be on the cusp of a fundamental shift in how jobseekers can access and pay for valuable short-term workforce credentials, one that emphasizes community colleges and other speedy alternatives. More states are seeking to establish or expand investments in short-term credentials and establish quality criteria for non-degree programs. Congress, meanwhile, is actively debating expansion of the federal Pell Grant program to include shorter credential programs. With that in mind, it’s time to take a close look at what’s working with these investments and to identify gaps or challenges facing policymakers, institutions, students and other stakeholders that may limit their eff ectiveness. According to a recent analysis from HCM Strategists, states are investing nearly $ billion a year in fi nancial aid for short-term workforce credentials. For state policymakers, these investments are often viewed as a key strategy for addressing workforce gaps while also ensuring more equitable access to programs that often do not qualify for federal fi nancial aid or traditional state aid programs. However, most of the programs identifi ed by HCM have been established within the last fi ve years, including some that were initially created with federal pandemic relief funds. As a result, we do not have a clear sense yet of whether these state programs are leading to positive education and labor market outcomes for learners, or whether there are best practices in program design that can support better outcomes. ese state investments in short- term credentials are substantial. For perspective, the main federal workforce training program provides only $. billion per year for adult learners. Existing programs are being refortifi ed and new collaborations are emerging, including partnerships with organized labor and community colleges. e AFL- CIO Working for America Institute and Biden-Harris administration off er best practices and examples here of what can happen. Industries are taking a serious look at how to marry their strategic goals with How to Expand Short-Term Credentials by CHAUNCY LENNON and KERMIT KALEBA Photo: iStock ere’s new money for job training, but let’s be sure it’s going to the right places — and people.36 WORKFORCE 2024 the aspirations of employees. PepsiCo’s Global Learning Center of Expertise (COE) offers a range of curriculum and skill development, including a debt-free education for U.S.-based employees. The company says this work extends employee retention, increases worker productivity and leads to long- term success. And there is continued investment at the community college level that offers “stackable” credentials to students. In Ohio, they’re tracking educational and career progress. Lumina Foundation supports expanding access to high quality, non- degree credential programs, including through increased state investments in financial aid and other student supports. We believe that states should consider the following questions as they look to expand opportunities for students, especially students of color. Expanding Access • States should help more students get the financial assistance and other aid they need to attain valuable non-degree credentials, perhaps by directing increased funding to those programs. This obviously benefits the students, but also provides critically needed talent for employers and leads to greater economic growth. • While we have good information about how much states are spending on short-term credentials, we don’t always know how many students complete their training or get jobs, or whether the programs supply the workforce talent most in demand. We believe that states should invest in data collection strategies that allow for evaluation of program outcomes and continuous improvement, with a particular focus on ensuring that adult learners of color have access to high- quality credentials. • Relatedly, while the investments are significant, many of these programs are paid for and administered outside of more traditional higher education funding streams and are cumbersome for institutions or individuals to navigate. States should consider ways to communicate the availability of tuition assistance and other supports and work with institutions to make sure students get the help they need. • State investments in short-term credentials typically include tuition assistance, but students need more help to be successful. Particularly for learners who are low-income or face barriers to education or employment, states should consider extra support services such as advising, food and other basic needs. This is especially important for part-time students with jobs, families and other challenges. • Awareness is key. While some state programs cannot keep up with demand, others appear to be underutilized due to lack of awareness on the part of institutions and students. States should consider ways to communicate the availability of tuition assistance and other supports and work with institutions to ensure adequate distribution of resources to support learners in these programs. Enhancing Quality • Short-term credentials vary widely in terms of educational and employment outcomes. States should seek to establish minimum criteria for credentials to qualify for state financial aid. National Skills Coalition has worked with 11 states to set statewide quality assurance standards for non-degree credentials, which can serve as a foundation for state policymakers. • States should also consider the potential for adult learners to continue their educational journey beyond their initial credential. While short-term credentials can be a crucial entry point to higher education for so-called “non- traditional” students, evidence shows that a significant percentage of learners do not continue on to degree pathways after obtaining their credential, and results for learners of color are mixed. To maximize future education and employment opportunities, states should encourage the pursuit of credentials that “stack,” or lead to even more valuable certifications down the line. Photo: iStock WORKFORCE 2024 37 Promoting Equity • Data suggests that learners of color are less likely to see economic or educational benefits from short-term credentials. Workers of color are more likely to enroll in programs that lead to less remunerative credentials and see worse employment and earnings outcomes than their white counterparts with the same credentials. States should collect disaggregated data on program participants and establish policies or processes that address disparities in access and outcomes for learners of color. • States should also ensure that institutions leveraging financial aid to expand short-term credentials have adequate capacity to serve historically disadvantaged workers and learners. States should also create expectations that institutions and employers create meaningful opportunities for workers of color, including career pathways within companies and industries that lead to greater economic mobility. High-quality, short-term credentials make up a growing share of the educational mix that powers our state economies. About 8% of people between the ages of 25-64 have a certificate or certification as their highest level of educational attainment. As we seek to grow these opportunities, it’s critical that we target investments in these credentials in a manner that is effective and equitable. We look forward to working with states and other stakeholders to grapple with these tough questions and create a higher education landscape that supports all pathways and all learners. Chauncy Lennon is vice president for learning and work, and senior strategy adviser for Lumina Foundation. Kermit Kaleba is the foundation’s strategy director of employment-aligned credential programs. Chauncy LennonKermit KalebaNext >