TMCC and WNC Joint Advisory Board
MEETING MINUTES
December 2, 2011. Redfield 103
Bill Doherty started the meeting by thanking everyone for participating.
Cindy Mortensen led brief introductions and discussed the importance of the advisory board to our recently completed
program evaluations. Cindy began a discussion about changes that are on the horizon regarding student success. Dave
Riske noted that the situation at WNC was the same and the discussion turned to options to measure student success.
There was general agreement on the following points:
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A professional certificate is required in CT for students who are just seeking certification. Several board members
noted that they attended TMCC only for certifications and would not have done so if they were required to
complete an academic certificate.
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Academic Certificates are not the answer, but they are a better measure of completion than an associate's degree.
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The primary purpose of an associate's degree would be a path to a bachelor's degree.
James Jones from the Mid-Pacific ICT center gave a presentation describing the results of two recent California workforce
studies. Key aspects of the studies were:
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ICT jobs make up a significant part of the California workforce.
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Demand for future ICT workers is expected to be strong.
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Half of employers have difficulty finding qualified ICT workers.
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There are thousands of job titles with varying qualifications that make it difficult for educators to identify workforce
needs.
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There are hundreds of different degrees and dozens of degree titles in the MPICT region making the “supply side”
of ICT workers also very confusing.
James presented the attached matrix as a proposed model to conduct a national workforce study. A focus group discussion
was conducted with local advisory board members to answer the following questions regarding the matrix:
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How can we describe categories of ICT Workforce, from higher to lower value in an organization?
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How can we categorize ICT technologies to learn about specific technical knowledge and skill demands?
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How can we best ask and learn about ICT Workforce knowledge and skills at different levels?
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What recommendations do we have for study methodology?
An active discussion followed with the following points noted and forwarded to the MPICT group:
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General comments about the matrix
o
Some industry representatives felt the matrix would be useful within their organization, especially to assist
Human Resources in screening applicants.
Page 1 of 2; TMCC and WNC Joint Advisory Board Meeting Minutes
TMCC is an EEO/AA institution. See http://eeo.tmcc.edu for more information.
Created: 7/18/2014; Rev: 8/12/2014
Technology Education and Business Alliance Meeting Minutes
•
•
o
All attendees indicated they could and would complete a matrix like this for their job titles.
o
Organizations cannot create ICT silos, the skills exist in many jobs
o
In small organizations one person handles everything from executive level to user support.
Suggestions for the matrix o Hardware and software are over-arching categories
o
Another set of knowledge/skills layers is; Strategic, Infrastructure, Process
o
A method of including organizational size/complexity would be useful.
o
Testing occurs across many levels, not just design/creation.
Comments about employment factors not included in the matrix o need portable employees with a common
foundation knowledge that can be shifted to different areas.
o
Age is a factor for some employers who feel younger people are out-performing older more experienced
workers.
o
Employers are looking for employees with a “hunter mentality”.
Page 2 of 2; Technology Education and Business Alliance Meeting Minutes
TMCC is an EEO/AA institution. See http://eeo.tmcc.edu for more information.
Rev.: 8/12/2014