Community College Network

Prepared by the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Worker and Community Transition 1000 Independence Avenue, SW Washington, D.C.  20585 202-586-7550

SPRING 1998

C²NET GRADUATES TO THE NEXT PHASE

Throughout 1997 and into 1998 we have seen, and are continuing to see, a growing importance and focus on training to meet the contractor's future work force needs. As downsizing subsides, the challenge of developing the right "skills mix" to meet mission objectives is becoming acute. The Office of Worker and Community Transition has in place the programs, personnel and other resources to assist the contractor and DOE field offices, in what may possibly be the Department's greatest work force challenge yet. For this reason, as well as the reality of a rapidly shrinking budget, the management and development of the C²Net program will be managed directly by this office. Ms. Cheri Bahrke who has performed an outstanding job as coordinator of site visits and program support, has agreed to remain involved and lend us her much needed expertise. New members on the team are Deborah Sullivan and Almira Kennedy from the Office of Worker and Community Transition, in addition to Cheri Bahrke, Dr. John Merwin and Walt Lips.

The objectives of the C²Net program will continue to support the Integrated Training Process that we outlined in the September 1997 Bulletin. It is our aim to tap into C²Net's resources to support efforts being made in work force planning, work force restructuring, labor relations, economic development and education/training. The site visits which have proven to be very popular and successful, will continue, and are planned well into the third quarter of FY 1998. In order to achieve the maximum benefit of the upcoming stakeholder's meeting, we intend to complete visits to all DOE DP and EM sites. If we have not visited your site, let us know, and we will make every effort to meet with you before June.

An increased level of participation from contractors, DOE site personnel, labor unions, community colleges and universities, as well as the community reuse organizations will provide a more diverse exchange of information. With this exchange, an open channel of communication will make it easier to access the C²Net program and create more awareness of the program's potential.

We believe the C²Net has the opportunity to play a pivotal role in the success of the Integrated Training Process and significant attention will be given to this very important challenge at the upcoming stakeholder's meeting in June 1998.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Source: Deborah Sullivan, DOE, Worker and Community Transition, 202.586.0452

The following article was published by The Kiplinger Washington Letter, March 1998:

"Dear Client:

Face it, these labor shortages aren't just a temporary problem. They're part of a LONG-term demographic change ... 20-24 year olds accounting for a smaller share of population, retirees for a bigger share. In states with relatively low immigration and birth rates, such as Wisconsin, there are already nearly as many 65 year olds as there are 20 year olds.

What's more, jobs will require higher skills...using computers and other technology, communicating effectively, knowing math and science. A lack of trained workers is holding back many companies and communities.

That's why firms of all types and sizes are stepping up training. It's not just high tech either. Computers are substantial part of it, but so are skills for manufacturing, construction and service industries.

A lot of partnering with local schools, notably community colleges and high schools for customized courses, tailored to what employers NEED. In many cases, schools send instructors to businesses to retrain workers for higher skills, even preparing some for supervisory responsibilities. Just about all community colleges are now offering customized training.

A win-win-win situation. Businesses get well trained employees. Schools get a better student-placement rate and often donated equipment or other from the businesses. And students end up with good jobs.

Here are examples of what employers are doing to develop skills:

• Home builders in Michigan, Ohio, North Carolina and Florida are working with community colleges and high schools to train students in framing...a critical skill. All 600 who've finished the course have landed jobs.
• In Rochester, NY, and a number of other places around the United States, the National Tolling and Machining Association works with colleges and high schools on training and apprenticeships to develop machining and tooling skills.
• In Rhode Island, a dozen plastics-processing firms got together and, with money from the state, built their own cooperative training lab.
• In southern Illinois, high schoolers are taught how to run equipment for excavating and grading. Sponsored by local contractors and a union.
• In Pueblo, Colorado, a community college tech center does training at simulated work sites that replicate a firm's actual working conditions.
• In Charlotte, a lathe manufacturer built its own training center, staffed by a community college. Other business also use the facilities.
• In Fort Pierce, Florida, a program for youngsters who have problem combines classroom training with on-the-job experience in the community.
• In Connecticut, a community college in rural area helps businesses promote from with in by giving a series of supervisor development courses.

If you're considering doing something like this in your own firm, suggest you start with your trade association and others in the industry. At community colleges, talk to people in the business and industry center. Most such schools will go out of their way to lend a hand on training."

The Kiplinger Washington Letter
Vol. 75, No.9
1729 H Street, NW
Washington, DC 20006-3938

Feedback from the DOE sites that have participated in this opportunity include reports that the information that was shared during the meeting, was essential to help "jump start" dialogue with others, on this very substantial training and manpower planning challenge. As many DOE sites have been faced with a change in their mission from production to environmental restoration, others are being challenged to do more with less. Both of these challenges will result in various forms of downsizing. The goal of the site visit is twofold; (1) to keep people at the site by retraining them in a different skill set; and (2) if this is not possible, the training they receive will prepare them for their next career outside of the "DOE world".

The Office sponsors the Community College Network (C²Net) and uses the resources within this network to accomplish site visits. A large amount of planning goes into each of these site visits. All participants are contacted by e-mail prior to the meeting and given the opportunity to raise any concerns that should be discussed in the larger group. Participants are given time during the meeting to highlight their restructuring efforts, training initiatives, and other services.

The Office and C²Net promote the idea of work force planning and training to accomplish successful restructuring goals. This process obligates line managers to assess their project and support needs and provide adequate notice for both surpluses and shortages. By knowing the actual numbers of surpluses and shortages, the task of categorizing workers that need retraining is made much easier. Workers in targeted layoff areas can receive notice much sooner and begin planning for their futures. So, what defines sooner and how does this process help workers plan for their future? The ideal situation is to provide workers enough notice of their pending layoff to allow adequate time for the workers to evaluate and take advantage of community college and other career opportunities. The ultimate goal of this structured process is to have all workers leave the site employed.

C²Net works with five groups of stakeholders to accomplish the ultimate goal. These stakeholder groups include: 1) DOE Headquarters, field and site offices; 2) contractors - Human Resources and Training on site; 3) Labor Unions; 4) institutions of higher learning; and 5) Community Reuse Organizations. By pooling the information that each of these stakeholders possess, an effective work force transition strategy can be produced.

Fernald
In January 1997, the Office sponsored a Work Force Planning effort at Fernald. The lessons learned from this process provide the basis of the planning message shared during the site visits. The Fernald site has the goal of downsizing from about 2,000 workers to approximately 100 over the next nine years using only voluntary separations. Workers have been ascribed to current tasks by FTE (percentage of a person) and also approximated by whole person according to the Common Occupational Classification System. Knowledge/Skills/ Abilities of the work force are established by testing and evaluation so that their versatility can be determined. The best information available is used to estimate which tasks are associated with individuals for the next year and afterwards so that the delta between current and upcoming skill requirements can be estimated. If funding is cut in a particular area, the HR manager can quickly estimate who will be impacted and who will need additional training to upgrade skills for new or changing jobs.

According to Fernald representatives, approximately half of Fernald's employees are taking classes at local colleges and universities to further their education or increase their skills. Tuition reimbursement to contractor employees occurs after the course has been successfully completed, therefore, the employee does not experience out-of-pocket expense for the course. This has greatly increased the number of workers attending colleges that provide this arrangement. Workers at Fernald are preparing for the day when the site will no longer be their employer.

Kansas City
On June 19, 1997, thirty-four people from DOE, the contractor, local educational institutions, and labor unions met to discuss the reduction-in-force of the Kansas City Plant (KCP). The KCP will lose up to 700 workers by the end of the fiscal year or soon thereafter. The facility did not know about the need for a reduction-in-force until February 1997. According to DOE representatives, the anticipated educational benefit will be $10,000 over four years with few restrictions on the type of classes an individual can take. Several colleges in the area presented information on courses available.

Metropolitan Community Colleges (MCC), includes Business Technology Center and Longview Community College and specializes in customized training and education for regional industry workers and is a nationally recognized trainer for AutoCAD, OSHA and other health and safety training. Additionally, MCC have agreements with Harley Davidson, Spring, Gateway 2000, Transamerica and other corporations to perform training. Longview Community College has well established mechanics training agreements with Ford Motor Company, General Motors, and Toyota. Salaries for graduates of this program are competitive, within a few years with those found at the KCP for skilled hourly workers.

Avila College, a 4-year college indicated that over half of its enrollment consist of non-traditional students, i.e., older adults that usually have jobs and are changing/enhancing skills. Avila has an active program to give college credit for work experience.

Rockhurst College, a traditional four year liberal arts school has a new School of Professional Studies, a program established to provide baccalaureate degrees for several disciplines in two years. Rockhurst would be glad to evaluate workers from the KCP to see if they could enter the program.

Another service offered free to the public is provided by the Worker Re-entry Program/Project Refocus. This office has three phases of help to the displaced worker, counseling, retraining, and re-employment.

This is the core of C²Net, the community of colleges. By consulting with local educational institutions, C²Net fulfills the requirements of Section 3161 of the Defense Authorization Act and brings in viable resources for educating and retraining a work force.

Hanford
On July 22, 1997, the Richland Area Office and Fluor-Daniel Hanford hosted a meeting to discuss their downsizing. Hanford is eventually slated for closure and has been downsizing for the past four years. Their work force high of 19,000 is now at 11,000. Workers that are being lost now are covered under an addendum to the last transition plan are involuntary. The educational benefit of $10,000 is still in place for workers leaving the site. It was reported that 22-25% of the separated workers have used an average of $1,815 of their educational benefit. The reason behind this is logistics. Hanford is the largest employer of highly educated and skilled workers, so people must leave the area for equivalent jobs. Those who suddenly find themselves without a job are concerned about financial obligations and are more interested in employment than lengthy educational programs.

As discussions progressed it was learned that the task of work force planning is diffused to the various team/subcontractor entities. However, the HR department is trying to obtain the function. The local Community Reuse Organization indicated they know of some jobs coming into the community and are constantly marketing for new companies to relocate to the tri-cities. Columbia Basin College does not have much to offer since its primary function is to assist students in completing a 2-year AAS degree or aid them in transferring to a 4-year college. Washington State University (WSU) indicated they host over 1,500 students who average 34 years of age and they have recently provided several courses to the DOE as part of a Technical Qualification Program.

All the possibilities have yet to be explored, but the work continues. Perhaps in the next few years additional educational programs will be incorporated into the work force transition plan.

Rocky Flats
On September 16, 1997, a meeting was held at the Rocky Flats Field Office. Rocky Flats has been slated for closure and has reduced its work force from 8,000 workers to the current level of 3,700. They are anticipating an additional reduction-in-force of approximately 400 workers over the next 2-3 years. The attendees at the meeting included representatives from DOE-HQ, DOE-RFFO, contractors, and educational institutions.

The Manager of Work Force Restructuring for Kaiser Hill talked about the Career Assistance Center. The Center offers a full suite of outplacement services and tracks users into their first job. The Division Manager of Training and Development indicated the training subcontractor has been very proactive in developing training databases, upgrading existing training, and setting up new platforms for delivering training allowing most training to be done on the job. The representative from Front Range Community College indicated they had not been involved with the site for the past couple of years, but were working to develop a relationship. The college does have accelerated programs that may assist the displaced work force.

Nevada Test Site
On November 5, 1997, the C²Net team visited with representatives from the Nevada Test Site (NTS) and the Yucca Mountain Project. While there has been some downsizing in the past, the Yucca Mountain Project is adding staff, and the current goal for NTS is to level out its staffing number. It is particularly important for these two facilities to share restructuring information so that there is not a break in employment for workers who can move from one facility to the other.

Both sites are situated in a growing employment market. Workers from either facility have many opportunities for re-employment. STAR ACCESS was secured by the DOE-Nevada office to provide outplacement services, career counseling, and a full range of testing and interviewing services to its federal workers, but these services are available to all site workers. In addition, site workers may use the contractor in-house outplacement services. The site also provides referral services to the state's Dislocated Worker program that has access to JTPA funds.

One of the most exciting facets of NTS's training portfolio is the proposed Teamster's Training Academy. DOE, the site contractors, the Community Reuse Organization, and the union are partnering to provide many different kinds of training courses for both on-site and off-site workers. Courses are being planned for commercial drivers, forklift and heavy equipment, and HAZMAT. While many of the details are still being worked out, this training center will be an important addition. There is also the future potential for a training course for miner trainers because the area has identified a need for approximately 500 miners in the next 4-5 years. NTS has a very mature program for tuition reimbursement and actively encourages its workers to upgrade their skills to become more flexible.

All four sites are different, but similar. It is easy to see how important it is to have good planning. Without a long range work force transition plan, workers are unable to prepare for their futures and employers are unable to readjust to keep up with their mission. C²Net continues to encourage educational institutions to become more aggressive in working with the site around them in preparing for work force reductions or mission changes and to provide general training courses. Both the member colleges and other institutions of higher learning are removing the barriers to receiving or continuing training and education.

Shawnee State University (SSU) is a special place! We are a one-of-a-kind state university in Ohio. We are the only university dedicated entirely to undergraduate education. Although many of our excellent faculty are involved in scholarship and creative activities, all teach as a primary focus, thus preparing our students for meaningful careers or graduate and professional schools.

Shawnee State University is strongly dedicated to its mission; to prepare students for the changing needs of business, industry, and society by encouraging individuals to think critically, act ethically, and communicate effectively.

With the 1980's signaling clear warnings of the escalating solid waste problem and the increasing public awareness, corporations must become more responsive to environmental issues. To keep abreast of this ever changing technology and concerns, local businesses and industries have indicated the need for qualified, professional personnel.

Shawnee State's location along the banks of the Ohio and Scioto Rivers makes us a logical choice for programs in water quality and wastewater treatment. Southern Ohio is also in a region suffering from heavily polluted air from industrial emissions. There also are strong ties to the medical and nuclear fields resulting in the need for hazardous and infectious waste control.

Shawnee State is a member of the DOE's Community College Network (C²NET) and has been working very closely with the U.S. Department of Energy's Uranium Enrichment Facilities to provide input to cleanup efforts and to provide training needs. DOE at the Portsmouth Site has chosen Shawnee State as their institution of choice to meet educational and training needs.

As a state university, SSU fulfills Ohio's public service expectations by meeting state priorities, including the continuing education and training needs of business and industry. Shawnee State is, therefore, a willing partner in cooperative ventures with educational institutions and organizations that assist in developing the economic, educational, and cultural base of South Central Ohio.

SSU has working agreements with local municipal agencies to use their treatment facilities as extended labs for our Environmental Engineering Technology program. SSU has experts from the field teaching specialty courses in water and wastewater treatment and analysis. The Environmental Regulations class is being taught by one of the legal personnel of Portsmouth's DOE site.

The full-time faculty have extensive environmental field experience from treatment facilities, research facilities, and U.S. DOE facilities (Hanford Site).

Our students are also required to participate in a co-op educational experience with local environmental facilities, to obtain the much needed "hands-on" experience.

The Environmental Engineering Technology program prepares graduates for responsible operation, maintenance, and management positions in a wide variety of industrial, municipal, recreational, and regulatory corporations of agencies. Those graduates who also earn licensure in a specific division of environmental engineering technologies are better prepared for management/supervisory positions in their environmental specialities. Graduates of the program have the advantage of understanding the biological, chemical and physical aspects of environmental engineering, along with the mechanical, electrical, and computer equipment required for waste processing.

The bachelor of science degree in environmental engineering technology helps the student develop a concern for the environment, the very life-stream of our existence. This concern, coupled with excellent communication skills, gives the graduate the edge needed to meet the environmental challenges of the 90's and into the 21^st century.

Following are comments from a few of the 65 students currently enrolled in the Environmental Engineering Technology degree program.

"This summer I received the opportunity to work in the Waste Certification and Verification Department at Lockheed Martin Energy Systems. The work I was assigned to was quite overwhelming, but my superiors were pleased with how well and quickly I caught on to the concepts and processes. I contribute these abilities to the programs at SSU." Matt Smith

"The Environmental Engineering Technology program here at Shawnee State University has the potential to become a premier program for the Southern Ohio area. It will afford local and out-of-area students the opportunity to learn about one of the fastest growing professional fields in today's employment arena." William A. Boggs

"By requiring the summer co-op education courses, the program places the students in a real-life situation where they are able to apply the technologies learned in the classroom. Furthermore, the program offers courses which allow students to become certified in certain areas. The experience earned in the summer co-op position and the certification available can make the students more valuable to future employers." Shane Williams

Shawnee State's environmental program welcomes articulation from other two-year environmental programs. We currently have arrangements with Ohio University, Columbus State, and Cincinnati.

In our area, the Tech Prep Ohio South Consortium partners with Shawnee State University, Ohio University Southern Campus, and local school districts with a wide array of regional business and industry partners. The Consortium, which originated in 1992 with a federal Tech Prep grant, is a dynamic initiative that continues to evolve and grow in its partnerships and its scope of programming to benefit high school students.

As Tech Prep high school graduates enter Shawnee State University, the associate degree programs in engineering technologies and business technologies are ready to receive them. Tech Prep students have the opportunity to enhance their associate degree by completing additional courses in a related technology area, making them better prepared for tomorrow's job market or baccalaureate degree program.

Source: Karla Young, Environmental Sciences, MATEC-ERS, 970.248.6555

Training Resources and Data Exchange (TRADE) is an organization of DOE Federal and contractor employees dedicated to improving DOE's products and services through training and other management initiatives. The annual TRADE Conference for 1997 was held the first week of December in Denver, Colorado with more that 450 participants in attendance. The theme of the conference was "Focus on Business: Return on Investment." Deborah Sullivan, who oversees the C²Net program for the Office, arranged for a presentation at the conference on C²Net support to the Worker and Community Transition Program, and the Integrated Work Force Planning process.

Walt Lips/DOE-HQ described the C²Net program and how it supports the Office in meeting the requirements and objectives of section 3161 of Public Law 102-484. Recognizing that the audience was primarily from the DOE training community, Walt spent some time providing background information on section 3161, the Worker and Community Transition Program, and C²Net. Once the audience had some familiarity with these subjects, he outlined potential benefits that C²Net can provide to DOE, and discussed some of the barriers that are preventing full realization of those benefits. Specifically, he noted that DOE sites, contractors, Community Reuse Organizations and other participants are often unaware of their local C²Net college's capabilities and flexibilities to meet their needs. Similarly, the colleges often lack information on the training needs of our sites, contractors, CROs, etc. The solution to both of these barriers is ongoing interaction between the college and site contractors, CROs, outplacement centers, and other participants in worker and community transition activities. Another barrier is contractor resistance to outsourcing training to local colleges or other potential suppliers. There have been instances where a contractor's internal training appeared to be significantly more expensive than it would be for the college to provide the training. The solution to this barrier is rigorous DOE oversight of the make-or-buy planning and analysis that is a requirement of all DOE performance-based contracts. This process compels a contractor to consider outsourcing of training, and should provide the local college with an opportunity to propose cost-effective training programs.

John Merwin of Fluor-Daniel Fernald presented the integrated work force planning process that he has used at Fernald to help manage the worker transition issues surrounding a DOE site that is in its final cleanup phase and going out-of-business. This process is aimed at meeting mission requirements in the most effective and efficient manner possible, while providing affected workers with as much advanced notice as possible of their career impacts, and identifying options to deal with those impacts. The Office views it as a "best practice" in its efforts to promote improvements in work force planning throughout the complex. Training has a major role in employee efforts to transition to new jobs with Fluor-Daniel Fernald over the course of the site's remaining mission, and in their efforts to smoothly transition to new careers outside of DOE. Successful implementation of the process benefits the employees, the company and DOE.

Source: Walt Lips, DOE, Defense Programs, 202.586.1806

During May and June of 1997, C²Net member Ulster County Community College in New York State delivered confined space entry and rescue training to all the regional offices of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC).

Working through the College's Mid-Hudson Health and Safety Institute (MHHSI), Ted Skaar and Michelle Rodden traveled across the state providing training to those individuals identified by DEC headquarters in Albany, New York as potentially impacted by the confined space regulations. Both one and two day courses were offered; the one day for primarily entry and the two day for both entry and rescue. Both courses emphasized a hands-on approach, with training exercise performed on/in actual confined space locations. All participants were afforded the opportunity to function in the various roles set forth in CFR 1910.146. Dressing in a full body harness and being suspended from tripod proved to be a particularly enlightening experience for many in the group.

The confined space training provided sizable revenues to the College's operating budget and is an example of creatively marketing and providing training courses. Comments from the regional offices to central headquarters were very positive, and resulted in MHHSI currently negotiating with DEC for additional courses in HAZWOPER Refresher, First Responder, and Spill Response. Inquiries about the training should be made to Ted Skaar/Ulster Community College at (914) 687-5173.

Source: Ted Skaar, Ulster Community College, 914.687.5173

The Department of Energy (DOE) is committed to providing assistance to separating or potentially separating contract employees through implementation of section 3161 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1993. To accomplish this objective, the Department's Office of Worker and Community Transition sponsors a website and electronic bulletin board called the Job Opportunity Bulletin Board System (JOBBS). This system provides a way for organizations and individual users to communicate, obtain information on job openings, and place the resumés of displaced workers on-line.

Over the past months, several major improvements have been incorporated into the Job Opportunity Bulletin Board System. Of primary importance has been the continued development of the JOBBS website (http://www.jobbs.doe.gov/jobbs/).   Not only does this provide a convenient, fast and easy means to access want ads and resumés, but also provides links to employment databases, other DOE contractors, and company profiles.

Below is a summary of current website features:

• Simple, easy to understand instructions
• Multiple resumés or want ads may be uploaded at the same time
• Statistics breakouts on usage by DOE field offices
• Complete list of all Common Occupational Classification System (COCS) codes
• Links to various employment databases such as Federal Job Bank, America's Job Bank, JOB Bank USA and more
• On-line employer registration capability
• Frequently asked questions section
• Section on employer company profiles

Perhaps the best feature of the website is its flexibility. As circumstances change or new information becomes available, we will keep the website updated. If you have any ideas on how to improve the web site or require assistance, please email the web master at jobbs@www.mry.com or call the Help Desk at (408) 642-6938. If you are not already using the JOBBS website, we encourage you to do so! All that is required is access to the Internet and a browser that is the equivalent of Netscape 2.0 or better.

Finally, for those who have not been able to previously access JOBBS, we have added a fax-on-demand capability. This service provides touch-tone telephone access to the want ads and resumés currently in the JOBBS database. By using this service, want ads and resumés can be faxed directly to your fax phone number. Fax-in telephone number is (408) 642-6932; fax-back number is (408) 642-6931.

For those who do not have Internet access and are using the dial-up bulletin board system to access JOBBS, we have software available for installation that provides a GUI interface. If you would like a copy of this software mailed to you, please contact Laurel Smith at the phone number noted below.

Through these enhancements, we hope that JOBBS will become more widely utilized by both contractors and displaced workers. If you have any questions, comments or suggestions concerning JOBBS, please call Laurel Smith at (202) 586-4091.

Source: Laurel Smith, DOE, Office of Worker and Community Transition, 202.586.4091



SIXTH NATIONAL STAKEHOLDER'S WORKSHOP TO BE HELD IN ALEXANDRIA, VIRGINIA

Plans are currently underway to hold the sixth National Stakeholder's Workshop on June 17-18, 1998 at the Ramada Plaza Hotel Old-Town, Alexandria, Virginia. This meeting will address the progress made on the issues and challenges identified at the last stakeholder's meeting in Oakland, California on April 9-11, 1997. We will also cover the full range of the Department's work force issues and will seek answers to the inherent challenges of simultaneously implementing the Department's post Cold-War mission, work force restructuring guidance, contract reform objectives, asset disposition, performance-based management requirements, and business process improvement policies. The format of the meeting will focus on discussions of best practices and lessons learned in the process of obtaining an effective and efficient work force. Prior to the meeting, on June 16, 1998, there will be a half-day meeting for Department of Energy employees.

The Office of Worker and Community Transition is in the process of forming a planning committee to assist in the development of the meeting agenda. This committee will convene mid-March via teleconference to discuss the meeting format and topics. A draft agenda packet will be mailed in early April to all those in our stakeholder database. If you would like additional information or would like to be a member of the planning committee, please contact Laurel Smith at (202) 586-4091.

Source: Laurel Smith, DOE, Office of Worker and Community Transition, 202.586.4091