Preparing Local Talent for Jobs in the Sub-baccalaureate STEM Economy: A Study of the Marcellus ShaleNET Program and the Energy Sector

该研究项目将研究一种行业-大学合作模式，以使劳动力发展战略与特定行业经济中的就业需求保持一致。研究小组将在Marcellus Shalenet计划的背景下进行一项混合方法的研究。能源部门与俄亥俄州、宾夕法尼亚州、德克萨斯州和西弗吉尼亚州的大学联盟之间的独特合作伙伴关系。通过这一合作关系，当地雇主设计了副学士学位证书项目，向学生传授关键的、特定职业的STEM技能，为他们在这些地区不断扩大的能源行业从事高需求的半熟练STEM工作做好准备。这项拟议的研究将有助于了解副学士学位认证计划在为工人提供在STEM劳动力市场取得成功所需的技能和培训方面所发挥的作用。它还将提供关于副学士学位项目和劳动力结果之间的关系的更多见解，以更好地为寻求改善那些没有寻求四年制学位的人的经济前景的当地大学和雇主提供信息。研究人员将收集和分析基本数据，并进行访谈和调查，以得出关于该项目的推论？S通过调查以下研究问题得出结论：(1)地区商业领袖和副学士学位教育和培训项目如何合作，以确保这些项目培养的毕业生获得了在能源行业取得成功所需的知识、技能和能力(KSA)？(2)石油和天然气行业特定证书项目是否传递知识、技能、低学历STEM劳动力市场的雇主所要求的能力？(3)获得石油和天然气行业特定证书的工人在STEM劳动力市场上是否比寻求其他中学后培训选择的同龄人更成功？这项研究将以强调雇主的劳动力市场筛选理论为指导。信任证书是因为它可以通过准确传达求职者的KSA来减少招聘过程中的不确定性，以及人力资本理论，该理论预测，那些接受过更有价值的特定工作培训的人将得到雇主更高的回报。该项目得到了ECR计划的支持，该计划强调STEM教育的基础研究，以产生该领域的基础知识。在基本、广泛和持久的关键领域进行投资：STEM学习和STEM学习环境，扩大STEM的参与，以及STEM劳动力发展。ECR支持积累强有力的证据，为理解、建立解释理论和提出干预和创新建议提供信息，以应对STEM兴趣、教育、学习和参与方面的持续挑战。

The research project will examine an industry-college collaborative model to align workforce development strategies to employment needs in a sector-specific economy. The research team will conduct a mixed-methods research study in the context of the Marcellus ShaleNET Program ? a unique partnership between the energy sector and a consortium of colleges in Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, and West Virginia. Through this partnership, local employers have designed sub-baccalaureate credentialing programs that teach critical, occupation-specific STEM skills to students set to prepare them for high-demand semi-skilled STEM jobs in the expanding energy sector across these regions. The proposed study will contribute to the knowledge of the role that sub-baccalaureate credentialing programs play in providing workers with the skills and training necessary to succeed in the STEM labor market. It will provide additional insights also about the relationship between sub-baccalaureate programs and labor force outcomes to better inform local colleges and employers seeking to improve the economic prospects of those not seeking four-year degrees. The researchers will collect and analyze primary data and conduct interviews and surveys to draw inferences about the program?s effectiveness by investigating the following research questions: (1) How do regional business leaders and sub-baccalaureate education and training programs collaborate to ensure that such programs are producing graduates who have acquired the necessary knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) to succeed in the energy sector?, (2) Do oil and gas industry-specific credential programs convey knowledge, skills, and abilities required of employers in the sub-baccalaureate STEM labor market? (3) Are workers who earn oil and gas industry-specific credentials more successful in the STEM labor market than their peers who pursue other postsecondary training options? The research will be guided by labor market screening theory, which emphasizes employers? trust in the credential because of its value in reducing uncertainty in the hiring process by accurately conveying the KSAs of the applicant, and human capital theory, which predicts that those with more valuable job-specific training will be more highly rewarded by employers. The project is supported by the ECR program that emphasizes fundamental STEM education research that generates foundational knowledge in the field. Investments are made in critical areas that are essential, broad and enduring: STEM learning and STEM learning environments, broadening participation in STEM, and STEM workforce development. ECR supports the accumulation of robust evidence to inform efforts to understand, build theory to explain, and suggest intervention and innovations to address persistent challenges in STEM interest, education, learning and participation.