Member Matters June 2022

Grady Hospital and Georgia State University are joining forces to smooth career paths for nurses. The partnership will provide hands-on learning opportunities at the hospital and help address the nursing shortage (Atlanta Journal Constitution). 

At Southern Illinois University Carbondale, a fortuitously timed partnership is also offering hands-on learning in health care during a time of pressing needs. Just before the pandemic, the university enhanced its Experiential Learning Lab for Informatics Education (EELLIE) with the support of Southern Illinois Healthcare. Now, as the field of healthcare management braces for a demand growth of 32% through the end of the decade, the lab is able to offer students the rare opportunity to train in electronic health records systems onsite (SIU Carbondale).

At Western Carolina University, a partnership with Mission Health is funding the addition of a nursing faculty member, who will increase the capacity of the university's accelerated bachelor of science in nursing program. Limited budget resources and a shortage of faculty have barred two qualified nursing applicants from WCU for each incoming student (WCU).

A partnership is also helping the University of North Georgia to expand its capacity to bolster the health care workforce. The Northeast Georgia Health System will host most of the clinical work for students who join the accelerated bachelor of science in nursing with degrees from other fields. About 20% of the program's students hold such degrees, and about 80% of completers remain in the region (UNG).

Workers at "the happiest place on earth" who are interested in furthering their education have a new source of joy. Hourly employees at Disneyland can attend in-person classes at Cal State Fullerton, marking the first brick-and-mortar learning experience to fall under the theme park's prepaid tuition benefit program (Daily Titan).

Microcredentials will feature in the Data Engineering Center of Excellence at Penn State University. The center is made possible by a partnership with IBM, which will extend internships to up to 20 students per year. The internships will generate the aforementioned microcredentials to allow students to immediately signal the competencies they engender (PSU).

After state regulations governing CDL processes tightened earlier this year, prospective truckers faced new course requirements. To lighten their load, Shasta College has made an arrangement with Cedar Creek Corporation, which is "next door" to its Tehama Campus, allowing students to complete their driving instruction after receiving their CDL via the college's eight-week, online program (Red Bluff Daily News).

Western Illinois University is partnering with the U.S. Army Garrison Rock Island Arsenal to provide flexible course formats that support the completion of bachelor's and master's degrees that include recognition of service credits (WIU).

Dallas College has formed a teacher apprenticeship program with a local school district that will let teachers earn income while completing degree requirements. Like similar programs in other disciplines, the teacher apprenticeship creates opportunities for students "to earn hands-on experience, a degree or a credential, and a salary with a partner organization" (Dallas Morning News).

A partnership between the University of Wisconsin-Parkside and a local school district is also improving career pathways for future educators. In the fall, participating high schools' students will be able to earn college through dual enrollment (University of Wisconsin-Parkside). 

Free career training is available for adult learners at Suffolk County Community College via a grant from SUNY's Stay Near Go Far initiative. The college consulted industry partners in the development of the training programs, which offer externships and other resources that help students embark on successful career paths (Suffolk County Community College).

A grant from Johnson Controls will become an investment in career pathways at Dakota County Technical College. The grant will expand HVAC associate degree and certificate programs. Support from Johnson Controls also includes mentoring and hands-on learning applications (Sun This Week).

Entergy has provided $200,000 to Greater New Orleans, Inc. to "support workforce development, retain businesses in the region, and attract new ones to the area" (Entergy).

Shasta College received more than $18 million in funding from the Regional K-16 Education Collaboratives Grant Program, which it will use to bolster career pathway programs that feed occupations shown through labor market data to be high growth and well compensating (aNewsCafe.com).

The University of St. Thomas - Houston is using funds from the Texas Reskilling Support Fund Grant Program to help students whose education or employment was disrupted by the pandemic to commence or continue college studies (UST).

Chamberlain University, home of the country's largest nursing school, has received a $1.2 million grant from the American Nurses Foundation to support a pilot program that seeks to better prepare graduates for practice by offering them opportunities to "assess the best 'fit' for their initial area of practice" and "receive specialty focused training and clinical experience in that area of practice" (Chamberlain University).

Educational Workforce Solutions
Athens State University will launch five new programs in the fall, each of which are "workforce-ready programs" developed to meet industry needs (The News Courier).

A new bachelor's degree in manufacturing engineering technology at Austin Community College will help adult learners advance along career paths and ease talent shortages in the critical sector. Manufacturing employs more than 900,000 people in Texas and generated more than $240 billion of the state's GDP in 2019 (Austin Business Journal). 

A new program at North Central College is also aimed at helping adult learners build on their experience to advance their careers. The online applied health sciences program is designed for associate degree holders in health care, who can use the bachelor's degree to take the next step in their career path; the degree also stacks into a graduate health science degree (Positively Naperville).

Tarrant County College, which is "stepping into the front lines of [the] nursing shortage," has seen a major growth trend in applications, up to 20% of which come from applicants seeking to relocate to Texas from less-affordable areas of the country (Fort Worth Inc.).

The University of Phoenix released a new whitepaper analyzing impetuses driving workplace attrition (University of Phoenix).

Awards and Other Recognition
Pierce College is one of 25 semifinalists in contention for the 2023 Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence (Pierce College).

Ohio University has been designated as a Collegiate Purple Star campus by its home state. To qualify, institutions must feature "a dedicated military/veteran point of contact, priority registration for veterans and servicemembers, surveys for student veterans and servicemembers -- along with their spouses and dependents -- about needs and challenges, and allow for the establishment of student-led groups and organizations for veterans and servicemembers" (Ohio University).

The University of Central Missouri has been honored with the UPCEA Outstanding Program: Noncredit Award for its learn-as-you-earn CNA partnership, which provides scholarships to qualifying adult learners to meet critical workforce needs (UCM).

Rhode Island College is the first postsecondary institution in its state to receive the federal designation of Hispanic Serving Institution (Rhode Island College).

The New Jersey Business and Industry Association and New Jersey Business Magazine presented the NJ Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Award to Thomas Edison State University (TESU).

Creative Credentials
The College of Professional Studies at Syracuse University is highlighting the potential of microcredentials to stack short-term learning experiences into longer-term education and career pathways (Syracuse University).

Excelsior College has added an online certificate program in cannabis control, which supports adult learners looking to crosswalk from other careers. The program includes three courses, which cover the ramifications of balkanized legal statuses, impact on individuals and institutions, and business risk (WBGO).

In Their Own Words
The University of Maryland, Baltimore County's Women's Center has an annual event to honor students 25 and older who are completing their first postsecondary degree. The university shared the perspective of several recent graduates to celebrate it (UMBC). 

The University of Chicago's Inclusive Economy Lab will be analyzing the "largest guaranteed income pilot in the country in terms of participants." The executive director of the Inclusive Economy Lab discussed the project, which "has the potential to inform the national conversation around the design of policies of this type" (University of Chicago).

The chancellor of the San Diego Community College District participated in a podcast to speak about the district's focus on workforce development and other imperatives (San Diego Community College District).

The president of the University of Nebraska System argues that a college education is more financially accessible than many people realize and notes the system's collaboration-driven efforts to ensure every young person has a pathway to completion (University of Nebraska System).

Along complementary lines, the provost and vice chancellor of the University of Wisconsin-Parkside urges higher ed to better articulate the strong individual and community benefits imparted by a college degree (University of Wisconsin-Parkside).

The Associate Vice Chancellor of Adult Education at City Colleges of Chicago has first-hand experience about life as an adult learner. He shared his perspectives about the impact better access to career and educational opportunities can have (City Colleges of Chicago). 

Dixie State University is implementing articulation agreements with several community colleges that will allow students to build on associate of science and associate of arts degrees to complete bachelor's degrees at DSU. A new transfer website helps students determine which courses and programs provide seamless transfer opportunities (St. George News). 

Mid-State Technical College and the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater now offer "2+2" articulation agreements allowing graduates of Mid-State IT programs to apply up to 64 credits toward a bachelor's degree in computer science or cybersecurity at UW-Whitewater (Point/Plover Metro Wire).

An agreement between CAEL members Valdosta State University and the University of Georgia is helping clear the education-to-career path of chemistry students to pharmacist. It allows VSU undergraduate chemistry students to enter UGA's four-year pharmacy program after three years in VSU's undergraduate program, affording them a head start into a growth career at lower costs (University of Georgia).

Business students are the beneficiaries of an agreement between the University of West Georgia and Dalton State College, another all-CAEL-member pairing. Completers of Dalton State's bachelor of business administration degree can accelerate and simplify their enrollment in UWG's master of business administration program; qualifying students can eschew the GMAT or GRE and graduate program application fee and will receive first consideration for the college's Early Executive Track (Dalton Daily Citizen).