Building the High Road: Workforce Development in Rural America Gary Paul Green University of Wisconsin Conference on Strengthening & Building Partnerships for Workforce Development, Orlando, Florida, March 2-5, 2003.

Road Map What are the challenges facing workforce development efforts in rural areas? How do employers, training institutions and community-based organizations (CBOs) collaborate in rural areas? What are the implications of different models of collaboration?

Workforce Development Challenges Demand for labor Supply of labor—especially cost and breath of training Information—employer and worker Spatial mismatch--housing and discrimination Childcare, transportation and other support Coordination and collaboration

Issues in Rural America Supply  Low levels of human capital  Lower returns on human capital investments  Brain drain Demand  Firms late in profit/product cycle  Competition/costs Institutional  Lack of intermediaries  External versus internal labor markets

Workforce Development Networks Workforce development -- constellation of activities from orientation to the work world, recruiting, placement, and mentoring to follow-up counseling and crisis intervention. Networks -- set of relations among persons, organizations, communities, or other social units.

Advantages of Networks Information Transition from school to work Cost Job turnover Paths of mobility Economic development

Data Sources Employer Survey Community College Survey Case Studies of Community-Based Organizations (CBOs)

Employer Survey Stratified by establishment size and industry (mfg. and service) Response rate=57.5 Total number of complete interviews=1590 Establishments operating in nonmetro areas. Phone survey focusing on training effort and relationships with community colleges and CBOs.

Community College Survey Sample drawn from respondents in employer survey. Combination mail and phone survey of closest campus to employer. 246 completed surveys. Response rate=74%. Survey focused on training programs, economic development activities, and collaboration with employers and other trainers.

Community/Regional Organizations Six intensive case studies Regional and functional variation Focus on organizational structure, types of training programs offered, and collaborations with employers and other trainers.

Community Colleges

Current Mix of On-Site and Traditional Classroom Instruction Source: National Survey of Rural Community Colleges (2002).

Programs with the Highest Student Enrollment Source: National Survey of Rural Community Colleges (2002).

Custom Training Programs to Employees Source: National Survey of Rural Community Colleges (2002).

Who Develops Customized Courses? Source: National Survey of Rural Community Colleges (2002).

Who Initiates Employer Consortiums? Source: National Survey of Rural Community Colleges (2002).

Chief Advantages of Employer Consortiums Source: National Survey of Rural Community Colleges (2002).

Most Commonly Offered Programs with Employer Consortiums Source: National Survey of Rural Community Colleges (2002).

Who initiates collaboration with CBOs? Source: National Survey of Rural Community Colleges (2002).

Chief Advantages of Collaboration with CBO Source: National Survey of Rural Community Colleges (2002).

Most Commonly Offered Programs with CBOs Source: National Survey of Rural Community Colleges (2002).

Businesses Participating in Apprenticeships with Community Colleges Source: National Survey of Rural Community Colleges (2002).

Students Participating in Apprenticeships with Community Colleges Source: National Survey of Rural Community Colleges (2002).

Employers

Amount of Money Spent on Job Training in Last 2 Years The mean amount spent on job training is $50,000 and the median is $10, % of companies did not spend any money on job training. Source: National Survey of Employer Training in Rural America (2001).

Firms Size and $ Spent on Job Training (Last 2 years) Source: National Survey of Employer Training in Rural America (2001).

Firm Size and $ Spent on Training Per Worker Source: National Survey of Employer Training in Rural America (2001).

Types of In-House Formal Training Available Source: National Survey of Employer Training in Rural America (2001).

Firm Size and Training by CBO Source: National Survey of Employer Training in Rural America (2001).

Types of Off-site Training Available Source: National Survey of Employer Training in Rural America (2001).

Employers Working with Other Firms to Develop Training Programs to Improve Skills Source: National Survey of Employer Training in Rural America (2001).

Employers Working with Other Firms to Develop Training Programs to Improve Skills Source: National Survey of Employer Training in Rural America (2001).

Work with CBO in Last 2 Years Source: National Survey of Employer Training in Rural America (2001).

Work with CBO by Industry Source: National Survey of Employer Training in Rural America (2001).

Firm Size and Work with CBO Source: National Survey of Employer Training in Rural America (2001).

School-to-Work Programs Cooperative education Youth apprenticeship School-based enterprise Tech prep Career academies School-to-work apprenticeship

Employer Involvement in Work-Based Learning Source: National Survey of Employer Training in Rural America (2001).

Employer Involvement in Work-Based Learning by Industry Source: National Survey of Employer Training in Rural America (2001).

Firm Size and Work- Based Learning Source: National Survey of Employer Training in Rural America (2001).

Community-Based Organizations

Rural Opportunities, Inc.

Mid-Delta Workforce Alliance

Portage County Business Council

Findings Collaboration between community colleges and CBOs increases the breadth of training offered; collaboration with employer consortiums narrows training. Cost and turnover limit employer provided training effort; participation with consortiums increases training effort by employers. Different workforce development models in rural areas: sole providers; hub-spoke networks, and employer-led/provided programs.

Keys to Success Local labor market conditions Stock of human capital Employer involvement Organizational capacity Collaborative management Local government commitment

Partnerships Partnerships take time to develop—better to consider existing programs; Proximity and communication matter (Advantages of one-stop job centers). Partnerships are fragile. Partnerships inevitably involve conflict, especially turf battles..