Executive Director & CEO's Message

NCATC Friends and Colleagues,

Competencies / Skills: The Critical Common Language for Industry and Education

We are no longer preparing for the future of work in this country: the future of work is here (CORD). The pandemic and ensuing devastating job loss have accelerated an already rising need for a flexible workforce—one where all workers can reskill in preparation for future employment and employers can upskill their workforce quickly, efficiently, and equitably.

The growing interest in skills-based hiring (Diplomatic Courier) advances the notion of “skills-based mobility” (Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland) for America’s workforce. How do we make this happen? A crucial first step is to create a common language among employers, educators, and learners. Competencies are that common language.

The growing interest in competency-based education (CBE) has given rise to multiple and occasionally confusing uses of the words “competency” and “skill.” We use these two terms interchangeably to describe what a person can do (applied) and what they know.

Competencies offer a bridge between academia (where “knowing” is usually prioritized and learning is typically abstract and siloed by discipline) and the workplace (where “doing” is usually prioritized and applied learning is typically contextualized, integrated, and purpose-driven). 

But a competency on its own is not enough. In our experience working with both employers and education providers, we have found that an essential component of a competency-based approach is the development and use of a competency framework. More than a list of relevant competencies, the framework delineates a coherent set of interrelated competencies. It can therefore serve as the blueprint for an educational or training program as well as for performance-based assessment on the job.

It is also a crucial mechanism that enables educational institutions and employers to communicate about the Knowledge necessary, essential Skills, and Abilities (KSA) for a specific occupation or cluster of occupations. The NSF-funded BILT Model is one of the best practices in the nation for achieving employer-driven education and workforce development outcomes that matter.

On the supply side, many current Gen Z high schoolers don't see college through the same rose-colored glasses as prior generations. Four national surveys of 4,255 students between February 2020 and September 2021 by Educational Credit Management Corporation (ECMC) and VICE Media found fewer than half (48 percent) are considering a four-year college. That's down 23 percentage points from a high of 72 percent in May 2020. Nearly one-third prefer several one-year-or-less educational experiences to a four-year experience.

On the demand side, many employers no longer use a college degree as the gatekeeper credential for jobs. Google, IBM, Apple, and Bank of America have shifted from degree-based to skill-based hiring, which evaluates a person's job readiness by their capabilities and competencies and then matches them to a job. This expands the labor pool, especially of minorities, since the degree hiring bias eliminates 79 percent of Latinos, 68 percent of African Americans, 73 percent of rural residents, and 66 percent of veterans who otherwise would qualify for jobs based on their skills (Opportunity at Work).

The supply and demand are disconnected. Employers have inflated the value of college degrees by requiring them for jobs that don't need them. For example, only 16 percent of production supervisors in 2015 had degrees. Today, 67 percent (Inc.) of those job postings require a degree, even though skill requirements haven't changed.

American society needs a radical move away from 4-year college credentialism. So it’s a very promising sign that Maryland Governor Larry Hogan has announced (Maryland.gov) that thousands of Maryland state government jobs no longer will require a four-year college degree.

As an alternative qualification, Maryland will seek out “STARs” (Skilled Through Alternative Routes)—those who are “age 25 or older, active in the labor force, have a high school diploma or equivalent, and have developed their skills through alternative routes such as community college, apprenticeships, military service, boot camps, and most commonly, on-the-job.”

BIG ON INCLUSION – Not surprisingly, the STARs categorization is likely to give its greatest opportunity boost to Black people, Latinos, immigrants, and veterans. This will make for a fairer country, but without dragging down those who have achieved their stations through merit. Keep in mind that about two-thirds (Washington Post) of Americans do not have a four-year college degree, so this reform also could make government more representative and less prone to mistrust and resentment.

BIG ON EQUITY – This agenda doesn't abandon the college degree option but has a broader understanding of opportunity and fosters opportunity pluralism, offering multiple pathways to jobs and careers that link education, training, and credential-earning to the labor market.

You can find a surplus of best practices for similar 21st-century programs, ideas, and initiatives at the 2022 NCATC Annual Fall Conference in Concord / Kannapolis, NC, hosted by Rowan-Cabarrus Community College on September 21–23. This marks our return after a full three (3) years due to the pandemic measures of caution, and we promise it will be worth the wait! Find all the information and registration links HERE.

And, we will continue our 2022 Strategic Partner and Government Relations Webinar Series focused on Future of Work: Industry 4.0, Work-Base Learning, ADEI and CTE/WDF Policies in partnership with AACC, Universal Robots, New Scale Robotics, MSSC/Amatrol, Core Learning Exchange, and Festo Didactic in 2022. Plus, you can find all the past webinar recordings on the NCATC website here.

NEW – On March 31st NCATC is launching a NEW Quarterly Member Drop-In that will focus on one of the 4 Strategic Focus Areas or Pillars each quarter. Our very first Member Drop-In will focus on NCATC Pillar 4: Access, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion in Recruiting and Retention for Workforce Development Programs – Best Practices and Gaps. REGISTER HERE.

And as always, we encourage you to stay regularly connected and up to date on all ATC, WFD, and CTE related activities and guidance via the weekly updated NCATC website, social media (LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, etc.), and quarterly e-newsletters..

J. Craig McAtee