Bridging workforce skills gaps in rural America amid ‘the great resignation' by leveraging a triple helix collaboration

IF 1.9 Q2 EDUCATION & EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH

Industry and Higher Education Pub Date : 2024-08-28 DOI:10.1177/09504222241277409

Melynda Thorpe, Christine Healy, David Olsen

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Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic dramatically impacted the job market through a surge in layoffs and the mass resignation of employees leading to the emergence of ‘The Great Resignation’. This study explores the perspectives of employers regarding skills gaps and hiring challenges with a focus on rural communities. A collaboration led by a prominent rural university department of Community and Workforce Development included industry partners, governmental agencies, a partner university, primary and secondary schools (K-12), vocational institutions, Chambers of Commerce, and Small Business Development Centers. Their objective was to examine the gap between employer needs and worker readiness. Leveraging the Triple Helix approach, a grant was awarded to fund a stackable pathway skills development program for high-demand industries in a rural five-county area. This program, the Industry Engaged Workplace Ready Program Model, is a two-phase, rapid-response approach for meeting emergent workforce needs by providing accessible training, education, networking, and mentoring to employable candidates. Findings revealed success in the program with mixed outcomes and room for program revision.

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在 "大辞职 "的背景下，利用三螺旋协作弥补美国农村劳动力的技能差距

COVID-19 大流行对就业市场产生了巨大影响，裁员人数激增，员工大量辞职，导致 "大辞职 "的出现。本研究以农村社区为重点，探讨了雇主对技能缺口和招聘挑战的看法。由一所著名的农村大学社区与劳动力发展系牵头，包括行业合作伙伴、政府机构、合作大学、中小学（K-12）、职业院校、商会和小型企业发展中心在内的各方参与了合作。他们的目标是研究雇主需求与工人准备之间的差距。利用 "三重螺旋 "方法，他们获得了一笔赠款，用于资助一项针对五县农村地区高需求行业的可叠加路径技能发展计划。该计划名为 "行业参与工作场所准备就绪计划模式"，是一种分两个阶段的快速反应方法，通过为可就业候选人提供便捷的培训、教育、网络和指导，来满足新兴劳动力的需求。研究结果表明，该计划取得了成功，但成果参差不齐，计划仍有修改的余地。

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来源期刊

Industry and Higher Education EDUCATION & EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH-

CiteScore

4.20

自引率

17.60%

发文量

期刊介绍： Industry and Higher Education focuses on the multifaceted and complex relationships between higher education institutions and business and industry. It looks in detail at the processes and enactments of academia-business cooperation as well as examining the significance of that cooperation in wider contexts, such as regional development, entrepreneurship and innovation ecosystems. While emphasizing the practical aspects of academia-business cooperation, IHE also locates practice in theoretical and research contexts, questioning received opinion and developing our understanding of what constitutes truly effective cooperation. Selected key topics Knowledge transfer - processes, mechanisms, successes and failures Research commercialization - from conception to product ''Graduate employability'' - definition, needs and methods Education for entrepreneurship - techniques, measurement and impact The role of the university in economic and social development The third mission and the entrepreneurial university Skills needs and the role of higher education Business-education partnerships for social and economic progress University-industry training and consultancy programmes Innovation networks and their role in furthering university-industry engagement