Research Brief
Aligning Education and Training to Meet Energy Workforce Needs
Aug 31, 2015
Aligning Community College Education and Training with Needed Skills
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In the past, West Virginia's energy sector was primarily based on mining and combusting coal for industry or electricity. In recent years, the production and industrial application of natural gas and natural gas liquids from shale resources have increased demand for workers in the energy sector. In 2013, the National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) asked RAND to work closely with the Community and Technical College System of West Virginia (CTCS) to develop a strategy for energy-sector employers and education and training institutions to collaborate to ensure that the local talent pool is prepared to enter the workforce with the competencies to fill energy-sector jobs now and in the future. To develop that strategy we examined data from the Occupational Information Network (O*NET) and interviewed energy-sector employers in West Virginia to determine the key knowledge areas, skills, and abilities required of energy-sector employees across the country and within West Virginia. We then analyzed data from the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission, interviews with representatives of academic and training providers within CTCS, apprenticeship programs, a regional Workforce Investment Board (WIB), and CTCS students enrolled in energy-related programs to determine whether education and training is aligned with the sector's needs and what may impede such alignment. We conducted a national review of promising practices from training provider–employer partnerships across the United States. Based on this analysis, we developed ten recommended action items CTCS and other regional stakeholders can implement to support a well-aligned and coherent energy-sector workforce-development pipeline.
Chapter One
Introduction
Chapter Two
Characteristics of the Energy-Sector Workforce-Development Pipeline: Education, Training, and Employment in West Virginia
Chapter Three
Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities Needed for Energy-Sector Occupations Across the United States and in West Virginia
Chapter Four
Community and Technical College System of West Virginia Education and Training Programs
Chapter Five
Promising Practices to Strengthen the Energy-Sector Workforce- Development Pipeline in West Virginia
Chapter Six
Summary of Findings and Recommendations to Improve the Workforce-Development Pipeline to Meet West Virginia's Energy-Sector Needs
Appendix A
Knowledge, Skill, and Ability Requirements for High-Growth Energy-Sector Jobs in the United States and West Virginia
Appendix B
Interview and Focus Group Data Collection Protocols
Appendix C
Technical Programs Offered by the Community and Technical College System of West Virginia and Enrollment by Major for Each College
The research reported here was conducted in the RAND Environment, Energy, and Economic Development Program, a part of RAND Justice, Infrastructure, and Environment.
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