Hampton Roads Delegation Attends Workforce Readiness Mission to Germany
STUTTGART, Germany – (Jul. 27, 2023) – The Hampton Roads Alliance, Hampton Roads Workforce Council, and Virginia Beach Economic Development hosted Presidents and officials of universities, community colleges, and technical colleges from Hampton Roads on a visit last week to Stuttgart, Germany — visiting with educational, business, and political leaders in the area. The delegation, which included Hampton Roads mayors and business leaders, explored Germany’s dual-track vocational education and training (VET) program, a national workforce development pipeline. The VET program supports roughly 1.每年在全国范围内培训300万名职业学徒，并作为德国高科技产业中推动人才发展的主要工具.
President Marcia Conston (Tidewater Community College); President Corey McCray (Paul D. Camp Community College); President Towuanna Porter Brannon (Virginia Peninsula Community College); Executive Vice President Joel A. English (Centura College and Aviation Institute of Maintenance); Campus President Andy Gladstein (ECPI University); and Associate Vice President for Corporate Partnerships Sarah Jane Kirkland (Old Dominion University) conducted a weeklong visit to apprenticeship sites around Baden-Württemberg, the southwestern region of Germany. 汉普顿路市长肯尼斯·亚历山大(诺福克)也加入了财富cff888界和商界领袖的行列。, Bobby Dyer (Virginia Beach), Shannon Glover (Portsmouth), Donnie Tuck (Hampton), and Rick West (Chesapeake).
The delegation visited corporate headquarters of manufacturers, business development offices, 以及与职业财富cff888培训计划相关的技术学校校园和学徒场所. 其中包括多瑙埃辛根的Gewerbliche Schulen职业学校和路德维希堡的oscar - walker - shul职业学校. The academic leaders interviewed technical school students, school administrators, company leaders, 和教师确定如何将这种150年历史的技术财富cff888模式的最佳实践应用到汉普顿路的财富cff888生态系统中.
Leaders from the region’s universities, community colleges, and technical colleges shared key takeaways from their visit.
•“与德国主要工业和财富cff888机构接触的机会非常宝贵. 在我们考虑如何加强和扩大整个汉普顿路的学徒计划时，他们的许多最佳实践和创新将影响我们的思维. 从那些早在14岁就开始学徒之路的学生那里听到的消息对我们的团队很有影响, 我对我们接下来将采取的系统性和战略性措施感到兴奋，以加强该地区的劳动力.”
Dr. Marcia Conston, President, Tidewater Community College
•“我们很清楚，德国的技术财富cff888从小学开始，在高中开花结果, 整个德国的创新型制造商和行业都依赖于VET项目中的劳动力发展模式.”
Dr. 乔尔·英格利希，Centura学院和航空维修研究所执行副校长
• “Germany is impacted by talent shortages, labor force skills gaps, low unemployment rates, and social misperceptions of the career, trades, and technical professions, just like we are in Hampton Roads. 但职业财富cff888培训计划表明，企业和政府的协调和有意投资可以支持高等财富cff888人才管道学徒系统，以满足雇主的需求.”
Dr. Towuanna Porter Brannon, President, Virginia Peninsula Community College
•“了解到德国学徒制模式如何演变为支持一种认识到技能行业在整个经济中的重要性的文化，这令人鼓舞.”
Andy Gladstein, Campus President, ECPI University
•“德国职业财富cff888培训计划为我们地区类似的学生成功模式的发展提供了一个框架, workforce, and economic development as symbiotic components. 我期待着与其他机构的同行一起实施这一倡议.”
Dr. Corey McCray, President, Paul D. Camp Community College
•“这项劳动力准备计划完全符合老道明大学的战略愿景, and we are eager to support and advance the work of this coalition. Our strategic plan closely parallels the goals of this initiative, 我们与商界的合作比以往任何时候都更加密切，以建立对我们地区产生重大影响的人才输送渠道. 正是通过与我们宝贵的合作伙伴的这项重要工作，我们将在本地区为子孙后代创造更多的机会!”
Dr. Brian O. Hemphill, President, Old Dominion University
职业财富cff888培训计划的一个关键特征是将行业合作伙伴作为投资者纳入财富cff888模式. 不仅制造商的生产设施被用作学徒的培训场所, but it is common for German employers to contribute input on curriculum, trainers to oversee the work of apprentices, 以及用于教授学生在工作场所使用的直接技术和工具的培训设备.
During the week, the delegation also visited the corporate headquarters of Stihl and IMS:Gear, manufacturers with facilities in both Hampton Roads and southern Germany, 了解公司如何依靠当地中学财富cff888系统中的学徒来满足劳动力需求.
Reimagining Career and Technical Education in Hampton Roads
As a next step, the academic leaders, mayors, and business leaders agreed to focus on collaboration between high schools, universities, community colleges, and technical colleges in Hampton Roads, in order to emulate the attributes of the VET program.
“很明显，弗吉尼亚州的财富cff888途径得到了政治和财政上的支持, and we are hopeful that the educational, political, 商业领袖能够在汉普顿路有效地工作，抓住这一使命的重点,” said Shawn Avery, President and CEO, Hampton Roads Workforce Council.
Based on the delegation’s findings during the mission, 下一步还将包括与汉普顿路和弗吉尼亚州的立法者和商界领袖进行对话，分享可能在汉普顿路有效的职业财富cff888培训模式的要素. Modeling many attributes of the German VET program, 代表团已经开始建立合作伙伴关系，通过培养满足关键行业需求的熟练劳动力，促进汉普顿路的经济增长，最大限度地提高经济发展机会. This program will emphasize socio-economic equity, cultural sensitivity, and historical awareness of all students, regardless of their backgrounds, while drawing from the German educational model. The program, coordinated by the Hampton Roads Workforce Council, will feature work-based learning, internships and apprenticeships, and collaboration between educational institutions and industry.
“As the Alliance and Workforce Council draft an MOU between Hampton Roads municipalities, educational institutions, and business organizations to articulate the goals of the effort, we look forward to region-wide collaboration, 以相互尊重和共同承诺为特征，实施德国财富cff888模式的特点,” said Doug Smith, President and CEO of the Hampton Roads Alliance.
The leaders plan to assemble regularly, 邀请立法者和商界领袖加入技术财富cff888联盟，以加强弗吉尼亚州东南部学生的机会，并加强劳动力发展途径，以支持当地工业.