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| navigate: home: magazine: fall 2003: article | |
| Penn College administers WEDnetPA funds to improve state’s economy By Celena E. Kusch | ||||||
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Companies can increase their productivity, reduce downtime and increase morale if employees are properly trained, according to Heather Baldwin, WEDnetPA coordinator for the Technology Transfer Center at the Pennsylvania College of Technology. “The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and educators throughout the state want to help companies become smarter and better at investing in the future of their employees and their own long-term strategic goals,” she said. To support workforce development and employee training statewide, the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development established the Guaranteed Free Training Program. This program provides grants to companies to fund the costs of enrolling employees in formal training courses. All grants are administered locally through the Workforce and Economic Development Network of Pennsylvania (WEDnetPA), a partnership of 35 community colleges, universities and technical education providers throughout the Commonwealth. One of the WEDnetPA partners is the Technology Transfer Center at Penn College, a special mission affiliate of Penn State committed to applied technology education. The Technology Transfer Center administered more than $3.4 million of Guaranteed Free Training funding to companies in the last year alone. “These workforce development funds have allowed many businesses to train staff in technologies that they would not otherwise have been able to afford. Through this program, Pennsylvania is meeting its objective of keeping local industries and workforces competitive in the global marketplace,” Baldwin said. “WEDnetPA is now in its sixth year, and the company response to the Guaranteed Free Training Program is really growing,” she added. “Last year, we had three times as many requests as we could fund at Penn College alone. This program was the brain-child of former Gov. Tom Ridge, and now Gov. Ed Rendell talks about WEDnetPA as a success story. We’re very pleased with the results of the training grants program.” Through the Guaranteed Free Training Program, companies can receive training grants to cover the costs of instructor-led and e-learning courses that can be taken on-site at the company, at a training provider or at another location. Funds may be used to provide basic skills and information technology training, including courses in supervisory skills, communication and teamwork, applied mathematics and measurement, workplace health and safety, problem solving, quality assurance, manufacturing fundamentals, applied manufacturing technology, e-business, Web site design and development, software engineering and computer programming. “The driving force behind the program is to make training company-driven. They choose the courses they need, they choose the instructor, and the grant supports them,” Baldwin noted. wqThrough the program, many Pennsylvania companies have enrolled their employees in Penn State courses that meet their workforce development needs. Management Development Programs and Services courses are the most common Penn State programs chosen by companies for their Guaranteed Free Training Program training. Penn State World Campus courses, Penn State Cooperative Extension workshops and training and regular University faculty offerings at Penn College in Williamsport, Pa., and other area campuses also have attracted students from this program. Recently, the program has expanded to encourage employers to plan for training beyond a single course. WEDnetPA’s newly launched Learning Organization Program helps companies develop a systematic approach to using learning as a strategic asset to improve their business. “In the Learning Organization Program, companies establish skill sets for jobs and tracking programs for employee training,” Baldwin explained. “The goal is to reduce brain drain in the state and help companies to be more proactive in meeting and anticipating their human resource needs.” Through the Learning Organization Program, companies work closely with the state’s educational institutions to build a long-term training curriculum specifically designed for their needs. Already several Penn State campuses are working in partnership with area companies to help them become learning organizations (see below). Such programs serve both the teaching and outreach missions of Penn State. An outreach program of the Pennsylvania College of Technology | |||||
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| Penn State campuses receive Learning Organization grants | ||||||
| Under the Workforce and Economic Development Network of Pennsylvania (WEDnetPA) Learning Organization Program, several Penn State campuses are partnering with area businesses to develop long-term, strategic training programs that will meet their workforce needs for years to come. The Altadis U.S.A. facility in McAdoo, Pa., and Penn State Hazleton have received nearly $38,000 to provide basic skills and information technology training. Altadis U.S.A. employs about 280 people at the McAdoo plant. General manager Leon Calviero stressed the importance of developing a highly skilled professional workforce in order “to grow this facility by establishing superior performance in a very competitive world market.” According to Debra Katchur, Continuing Education representative at Penn State Hazleton, the Learning Organization Program already has provided computer training and supervisory courses through Management Development Programs and Services. Future offerings may include food safety courses developed with the Pennsylvania Technical Assistance Program and Penn State Cooperative Extension, as well as electricity courses taught by Penn State Hazleton faculty. Penn State Mont Alto has received $6,800 to provide training in lean manufacturing and computer skills to two local companies. “This funding opportunity came at a good time for some companies in our area,” Randy Carper, Continuing Education representative at Penn State Mont Alto, said. “These are small companies with 50 to 75 employees who struggle to find the time and resources to complete the training that they need. Both companies that were approved have partnered with Penn State and the local Industrial Resource Center (Mantec) to complete some training programs that they otherwise may not have done.” A $40,000 WEDnetPA contract has allowed Penn State DuBois to develop a progressive plan for ongoing training with a local manufacturer. John Blasdell, Continuing Education representative at Penn State DuBois, noted that more than 50 employees from different areas of the company have already completed courses in leadership, technical writing and statistical problem-solving. “The Learning Organization Program has allowed the company to link its needs with long-term strategic goals and business objectives and to take a proactive approach to workforce development. They are extremely satisfied with the results of the program,” he said. In the future, additional campuses may become involved with the WEDnetPA Learning Organization Program. Penn State New Kensington already has plans to submit a grant in the coming year (see story). An outreach program of Penn State |
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