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Why ECC?
ECC’s Dr. Elvy Vieira, second from left, with other conference participants
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Dr. Elvy Vieira, Dean of Community, Continuing Education and Workforce Development, represented Essex County College at the Tech Workforce Educational Fly-In conference, sponsored by the Computing Technology Industry Association (CompTIA).
The conference, in Washington, D.C. on November 13-14, brought together over 50 representatives from colleges, government and non-profit agencies, and businesses. The purpose of the conference was to discuss alternative pathways to tech careers.
“It’s important for us at ECC to provide tech training to our students, many of whom are the first in their families to attend college. If we don’t look at giving access to high tech training to our minority population, these students face the danger of being left out of in-demand careers,” said Dr. Vieira.
ECC does provide a wide range of technology training through the College’s Training, Inc. But Dr. Vieira noted there is always room to expand and offer more programs.
“Tech talent is in high demand with one million open positions in the U.S.,” said Nancy Hammervik, Chief Solutions Officer for CompTIA. “These jobs can open doors and unlock potential for underserved populations to earn sustainable wages and strong career paths to help economically disadvantaged families and communities.”
The conference included government officials who discussed funding programs for tech career pathways and workforce needs.
“The session provided information on emerging technologies which we can use in developing new program offerings. We want our students to earn the credentials needed to secure these in-demand jobs,” stated Dr. Vieira.
The Success Stories in the Tech Workforce Landscape panel discussed how employers, educators and workforce boards are addressing the tech workforce needs and shared their experiences and recommendations.
“It’s important to know the direction various industries are going in order to meet their hiring needs and provide them with the trained employees they will require in the future,” stated Dr. Vieira.
