been an afterthought at best,” Vassey says. “This is one of the most important workforce develop- ment higher education bills that has been passed in a decade.” “Higher education is not just
about college degrees,” says Wendy Kang, SCHEV’s director of higher education innovation. “We recognize that higher education includes workforce credentials as well as a college degree and that [credentials] are just as meaningful in the marketplace.” Students pay one-third of the
enrollment fee upfront, and the state government reimburses Vir- ginia’s community college system for the rest upon completion. The credentials are stackable, meaning they can build on each other, and are available to anyone who wants to enroll. “These kinds of professions
really offer an alternative [route] to success for the majority who won’t earn a baccalaureate degree and need another way to get family-sustaining wages,” says Elizabeth Creamer, adviser for workforce development in the Virginia Office of the Secretary of Commerce and Trade. “We still have about 35 percent of our high school graduates who don’t go on to any type of secondary education, and there haven’t been sufficient vehicles to train them for jobs that offer them good wages. … We needed workforce training that could be delivered in weeks or months instead of years, as is the case with traditional col- lege instruction. “The fact that a young
person can come out of [high] school and for a third of the cost they used to be facing take a fairly short welding course and get hired … that’s a real victory.” This new workforce develop-
ment grant program is “providing a good opportunity for adult edu- cation students, for high school graduates, for our veterans” and anyone who wants to pursue a new career path or add to their
Photos by Jay Paul
www.VirginiaBusiness.com
“The fact that a young person can come out of [high] school and for a third of the cost they used to be facing take a fairly short welding course and get hired … that’s a real victory,” says Elizabeth Creamer, adviser for workforce development in the Offi ce of the Secretary of Commerce and Trade.
existing vocational credentials, Creamer says. The Virginia Board of
Workforce Development, an advisory body appointed by the governor and largely made up of business leaders, developed the list of qualifying professional credentials that are eligible for
reimbursement. The certification programs,
which do not earn college credit, are taught at Virginia’s state community colleges and higher education centers. Students who don’t complete the programs must pay an additional one-third of the enrollment cost.
“Higher education is not just about college degrees,” says Wendy Kang, director of higher education innovation at the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia.
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