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Career education is a vital pipeline to high demand jobs in the workforce. Students from all walks of life benefit from the opportunity to pursue their career education goals and find new employment opportunities. Join Dr. Jason Altmire, President and CEO of Career Education Colleges and Universities (CECU), as he discusses the issues and innovations affecting postsecondary career education. Twice monthly, he and his guests discuss politics, business, and current events impacting education and public policy.
Jason Altmire (00:04):
Hello, and welcome to another edition of Career Education Report. I'm Jason Altmire, and today we're going to focus on the workforce shortage in Georgia, in particular, but we focus a lot on these podcasts about the workforce shortage in various professions. And Georgia is an interesting case because the state has an unbelievable workforce shortage of 180,000 unfilled jobs last year. And part of the reason for that is because the state has been incredibly successful in gaining new businesses into the state, manufacturing, winning investments for clean manufacturing, in particular electric vehicles and battery production and things like that. So the Georgia Manufacturing Association has been looking into this issue and trying to figure out how they can possibly get these jobs filled and train enough workers and educate enough people and bring people in from other areas, presumably also, to fill these unmet needs. And they have assigned to the task Stephanie Scearce. She is the association's director of Workforce Development, and she has a background in career in technical education as well. Stephanie, thank you for being with us.
Stephanie Scearce (01:27):
Thank you for having me.
Jason Altmire (01:28):
Can you talk a little bit about what your role is with the Georgia Association of Manufacturing and why it is so critical that you're able to be successful in turning around this pipeline for high demand jobs?
Stephanie Scearce (01:44):
Absolutely. So my role specifically with the association is brand new. This role did not exist last year, and that just really goes to show how much focus our manufacturers are serious about putting on workforce development because we have had unprecedented growth in Georgia with new companies coming to the state. Which has been phenomenal, and we want to continue that definitely., But at the same time, we're starting to feel the consequences of not having enough workers. Right now, the concept for filling these new jobs and even some existing jobs, if you want to call it filling, is robbing Peter to pay Paul basically. So robbing from other manufacturers to fill new jobs with new manufacturers is not sustainable, and we've got to figure out a way how we can get out of that.
(02:39):
So we've definitely developed a workforce strategy that not only caters to addressing the immediate needs of our members and manufacturers across the state and their collective needs, but also in the timeframe that they need them to be addressed. But such an important component of this is we have to facilitate a net increase in our labor force participation, specifically for manufacturing, to get out of this robbing Peter to pay Paul concept. And so this workforce strategy is really a two-pronged approach with addressing immediate needs now as well as facilitating initiatives that address the long-term needs. But both of those approaches have to involve facilitating a net increase in our labor. And so that's really the focus moving forward, and that involves manufacturers looking or considering populations that they didn't tap into before. I do think there are pockets of populations out there that if we can learn how to work with them, revamp our hiring processes and just really the way we do business, we might can put a dent in this workforce issue and challenge.
Jason Altmire (03:50):
And you talked about how this role was newly created specifically to address that workforce shortage, 180,000 unfilled jobs. So when the Georgia Association of Manufacturing wanted to create this role, they of course needed somebody to fill it and they found you. And you in your prior work was the Vice President of Economic Development for Georgia Northwestern Technical College. What has that experience brought with you to the task that you're now charged with?
Stephanie Scearce (04:23):
Absolutely. Very valuable, and in fact, I'll even say the last two roles I've had are really proving to be very beneficial in this new role at GAM, not only having worked at the technical college, but prior to that I was with the Georgia Department of Economic Development as a regional project manager. So with the state, with Department of Economic Development, I was able to really dive deep and learn about the incentives that Georgia has for new job creation and capital investment, as well as other incentives to help existing manufacturers.
(04:59):
And then when I went on to the technical side, I really cut my teeth there, if you will, in the workforce development arena, and really the different approaches that need to be facilitated by the education system, whether on secondary or post-secondary to address manufacturers needs in a timeframe they have to have. So working at the technical college that really educated me on what are the best approaches and best ways to address the workforce needs based on the customer. I can make them aware of credit programs, whether they're associate degrees, diplomas, or certificates that teach a skill, but that I can also make them aware of what we refer to as an non-credit training that's fast-tracked, customizable, can be delivered anywhere and is really aimed to fill the gaps where our credit programs don't.
(05:54):
And so now coming into this role as we develop our workforce strategy, as our members are telling me the positions they must focus on now, the credentials they required and the timeframe that they need to fill these, which is the majority under three months, that's telling me we've got to go the fast track route, we've got to get our education partners to work with us to customize non-credit training that focuses specifically on specific credentials as well as occupations to fill these roles in a timely manner. And ideally train people that have never worked in manufacturing before on all levels, so that they can go through a fast track program to equip them with the skills they need to fill these immediate positions and build on that from there. So working in both of those arenas has proved instrumental in developing a strategy in this new role with GAM.
Jason Altmire (06:47):
And what's unique about what Georgia is facing is the heavy dependence on expertise in electric vehicle manufacturing because the state has been so successful in recruiting those businesses, and that's where a lot of that shortage is. And one of the most innovative things that you all are doing is that you're targeting K through 12 students. So much has been written about the pathway to a four-year degree being something that we've emphasized a little too much and that students should be aware of post-secondary opportunities in career technical education, but I don't think as much has been written and said about the K through 12 issue with the perception that exists on pursuing a technical career. And the State Department of Education has prioritized this and has developed a pathway for electric vehicle career courses that schools can implement at the K through 12 level. And we'll talk in a minute about the work that you're doing at the association to focus on that.
(07:49):
But I think to level set, what exactly is the skill set that is required to do these jobs with electric vehicle manufacturing? What is it that these employers are looking for in particular? And does it require a post-secondary credential as well, or are you're just looking to get people right out of high school?
Stephanie Scearce (08:10):
That's a great and very loaded question, and what I would try to answer from many angles. But I think for us, and what we're trying to do as an association, yes, the EV industry is definitely an up and coming sector of manufacturing or vertical of manufacturing in Georgia, and there will have to be pathways implemented that do specifically cater to that. But at the same time, and this is what I learned, especially when I was at the technical college, when you step back and you really want to develop meaningful programs that address the majority need of manufacturers, whether you're in food processing, automotive, flooring, machine manufacturing, what have you, there are usually common fundamental skills that are needed in their operations. And so that may be a basic understanding of math skills, a basic understanding of hand tools and troubleshooting techniques, a basic understanding of measurements and blueprint interpretation, going up a step above for maintenance, it's usually an understanding on how to read electrical drawings, schematics, also mechanical expertise, again, going back to basic angle interpretation and measurements, welding.
(09:31):
So these are occupations that are high in demand but are very transferable and of great value in most verticals of manufacturing, especially from an association level with our workforce strategy. My job is almost, I'm almost an individual consultant to our manufacturers as well as trying to develop statewide initiatives that are addressing the immediate and collective needs of manufacturers. And so we actually just were about to publish our workforce needs assessment that we administered in May through June that we're asking those questions, what are the occupations that you need to focus on now and foresee being a need for the next three to five years? What are the credentials required? What's the timeframe you need to fill them? What type of populations are you willing to work with?
(10:21):
And out of those results, the manufacturers that participated, which was a sample size of the 90 manufacturing responses representing 70 unique companies across the state, the number one occupation they want to focus on are entry level production. And the median hourly wage for that is almost $18 an hour. And these are for positions that a lot of our members are considering not even requiring a high school diploma for anymore, or not even requiring experience. So we're really trying to communicate that these are definitely more than just jobs, they're positions that build on each other and offer career advancement. So going from production into maintenance roles. We've identified three occupations that manufacturers have collectively agreed on are their needs they want to focus on, and now we're working with our post-secondary partners to develop the training overviews to teach those fundamental skills in each of those occupations or train them within that three month period, if you will.
(11:22):
But with the EV market, there are some applicable maintenance skills that can be transferred, but then you're also dealing with some different components that require more specialized training. And so when you have companies that the manufacturers that have located to our state, they are investing significantly into our technical colleges and even at the secondary level to implement that curriculum to really hone in on that. And so that's where the individual consulting aspect comes in. If there's something that we're doing that's not meeting a specific need of one of our members, we work with them one-on-one to develop a customized approach. And that's where you really have to be strategic with it and really determine what is the need, what's the next step to address it.
Jason Altmire (12:07):
And you mentioned that you now have this information from the survey of employers and manufacturers, and they're willing and have been putting financial resources into the work of identifying opportunities for students and helping them achieve their career. But how do you identify, you mentioned identifying workforce partners for career and technical education at the post-secondary level. How do you identify those partners?
Stephanie Scearce (12:37):
Another great question. And I will have to say, I have my background to thank for a lot of that, having worked in post-secondary. I have a decent understanding of what our technical college system can provide, as well as what our university system can provide, and how we determine those stakeholders to engage is solely based on our members' needs. So for example, our members need to fill, I'm going to use one of the occupations as an example, industrial mechanical technicians in under three months. That's taking me, putting me through this mechanical technician program that's going to teach me to be a level one and level two mechanic with the fundamental skills. In order to do that, we're going to have to work with the technical colleges across the state with their economic development departments specifically to develop that training. And we've got to be able to fit it in a timeframe that's realistic and that meets the needs of our members.
(13:34):
Now, some of our members really want some mechanical engineers or really want to work with mechatronics technicians or engineers as well. So what we're doing is we know our four-year schools like Kennesaw State, MGA, Georgia Tech, many others, they provide that type of training, which usually requires about four years. So it's really dependent on the need, the expectation of skills that's needed that really determines who you partner with. So having just that background has really been so helpful because there's been many a times where I've told myself, "Gosh, if I hadn't gone the path I have in my career, I don't know I could do this job I have now," because so overwhelming.
Jason Altmire (14:19):
As I mentioned earlier, the unique part about what you're doing, one of the unique parts is you're focusing also on K through 12 education. And your association by definition represents the employers, the manufacturers who are creating these opportunities, who have the unfilled jobs, and it's been overlooked, I think, by some to focus on getting kids, students interested at the K level. How have you gone about doing that?
Stephanie Scearce (14:51):
One specific initiative is we have been working with the Georgia Department of Education as well as the SME Foundation through their SME Prime initiative. And what this is, SME Prime specializes in developing and implementing manufacturing curriculum pathways in high schools, either helping them to implement if they haven't had one before, or maybe improving upon one that needs to better align with industry needs.
(15:19):
So this year, the state stepped up and has dedicated funding to help implement the SME prime manufacturing pathways throughout 12 high schools in the state, it's a pilot program. And so we stepped in to help out with that whenever to make sure our members were completing the needs assessment required to develop the manufacturing pathway on the high school level. So we were very involved in that.
(15:44):
We also are actually brainstorming and starting to develop focus groups with our membership to really identify and target a manufacturing awareness campaign that specifically targets these high school students and maybe even younger, because one of the biggest things that our members need and that may crave is more direct connection with the student body, whether it's middle schools, high schools, even adult workers and their parents, because we want to change the perception of manufacturing. And the only way to really do that is to start early on in the process and engage with the secondary level through platforms like gaming technology, really creating an environment or a medium to communicate with them that they understand very well. We have to communicate with them how they'll receive it, not how we have always done it.
(16:38):
And so this is definitely stretching manufacturer's comfort zones and getting outside their boundaries and learning how to be creative with trying new things and trying to expose and educate the reality of what manufacturing is today and the careers it offers. So those are just some very high level examples of how we are specifically engaging with secondary.
(17:04):
And I actually just got back from an event last week in Troup County, LaGrange, Troup County, Georgia, where they hosted a manufacturing day event and had about 1,300 high school students come through and meet with all these manufacturers displaying, we were there and supportive of them, but just learning about the industry, the opportunities available that they didn't necessarily know about beforehand. Anytime we had the opportunity to do that, we jump on it.
Jason Altmire (17:31):
And part of this is interactive, it's not just giving information or giving an employer a platform to talk about what they do, it's about showing the students, giving them a hands-on opportunity to learn what these jobs would look like.
Stephanie Scearce (17:45):
One thing that we're realizing, because we're all KPI driven, we like to see, are we making an impact? What's lagging? What are we doing really good on? We've got to, and this is part of our manufacturing awareness campaign, is we've got to establish a go-to resource about all things manufacturing in Georgia, all the way from almost creating the social media platform, if you will, where our manufacturers have access to this database to communicate directly with the public about what manufacturing really is, providing some engagement pieces. But to your point, doing tours, going to speak to classes are great, but if we don't have that next step to facilitate that engagement, to take it further and actually measure that impact, we don't really know how effective we're being.
Jason Altmire (18:35):
How do you get students interested at the K through 12 level? Because I would think there's a perception issue that you have to overcome, maybe even more so with that age of student than with an adult student seeking a career. How do you overcome the perception problem?
Stephanie Scearce (18:52):
We're learning that, we're trying to figure it out ourselves, but I personally think that it's going to have to be through some form of gaming technology, some type of digital engagement in the cooperation of the local school systems working with us on it. We have not even taken the next step to facilitate that, so we've got a lot to learn on how can we facilitate that while still being compliant with certain federal regulations and information sharing and that sort of thing. So we've got a lot to learn in this arena.
(19:24):
But I think for us to put our foot in the door, we've got to explore software technology platforms that really speak the language of that audience, of that generation and communicate to them what manufacturing's really like now in a language that they understand and in a medium that they appreciate. And with our awareness initiative that we hope to kickstart sometime during the first quarter of '24, we're actually going to look at targeting the SME Prime high school students as a pilot, because that's low hanging fruit, if you will. They're already engaged in manufacturing pathways, what if we can work with those high schools that we've with and say, "Hey, if we could have these students enroll on this "app"," or what have you, to where we could facilitate consistent engagement, I think that might be a way to start facilitating that change.
Jason Altmire (20:21):
Our guest today has been Stephanie Scearce. She is the director of workforce development at the Georgia Association of Manufacturing. Stephanie, if a school wanted to get in touch with you, especially a career school in Georgia wanted to become involved in the activities that you're helping to promote, how would they find you?
Stephanie Scearce (20:39):
So by two forms, my phone number, you can text or call me anytime on that, 706-633-7619, or they can simply go to our website at gamfg.org and find my contact information there.
Jason Altmire (20:55):
706-633-7619, thank you for being with us today.
Stephanie Scearce (20:58):
Thank you for having me. It was a great conversation.
Jason Altmire (21:08):
Thanks for joining me for this episode of the Career Education Report. Subscribe and rate us on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts. For more information, visit our website at career.org and follow us on Twitter @CECUED. That's @C-E-C-U-E-D. Thank you for listening.
Speaker 3 (21:29):
Voxtopica.