Worcester Business Journal

10 2016 Central Mass By The Numbers • Worcester Business Journal • www.wbjournal.com W hile enrollment at the school is off from the high during the Great Recession when the population looked in droves for more education, Quinsigamond Community College now is offering more options for students to entice all types of community members back to school, including more science and technology courses and a continued focus on liberal arts Lillan Ortiz, QCC vice-president of enrollment, student engagement and com- munity connections, spoke about the com- munity college's effort to link the needs of the economy with students' training. Enrollment at QCC jumped during the Great Recession, with unem- ployed people returning to work and many people taking time to gain new skills. How is it doing now that unemployment has dropped? Quinsigamond Community College played an instrumental role in prepar- ing students for the jobs that became available in Central Massachusetts when companies began hiring again. When the economy shifted downward, our enrollment increased 10 percent because people recognized that this was their opportunity to secure a credential or training to either become employed or enhance their existing employment. Due to the recession and the needs of our community, we created stackable certificates in the areas of health care, EMT, paramedic, nursing assistant, phlebotomy that were specifically designed to prepare students for the projected jobs to come. Those who took advantage of this were able to utilize workforce development funds to help pay for certificate programs in the health and technical areas and were prepared for the hiring upward shift when it came. When the economy is thriving and unemployment is down, our enrollment tends to trend downward. So we focus on the traditionally aged students, non- traditional students, veterans, unem- ployed, structurally unemployed and career changers. What fields of study are students most interested in these days? Are certain subjects becoming more or less popular? Students are interested in the science, technology, education and math (STEM) fields, which fall into the health careers, engineering technology and computer science fields. QCC has also experienced steady interest and enrollment in the areas of business, criminal justice and advanced manufac- turing. We built a cybersecurity certifi- cate program that will help us to fill the government jobs in the areas of interna- tional security, which has to do with terrorism and homeland security. What do you hear from local employers as far as the skills they want to see in new graduates? Employers tell us that they are seek- ing graduates that have excellent techni- cal skills. Just as important as the tech- nical skill are the soft skills which include verbal and written communica- tion, interpersonal skills, problem solv- ing, customer service skills, business etiquette and professional attire. Overall, they generally want graduates to have an ability to be a team player by collaborating with their colleagues. Do you think the growing emphasis on STEM areas of study at local high schools has encouraged more stu- dents to take an interest in these subjects? We have been experiencing an uphill trend in our STEM enrollments. Over the past five-year period, there has been a 7-percent increase in STEM. We believe that this can be attributed to our expanded marketing effort and to the laser focus attention that has been placed on future STEM jobs by officials in the high schools, vocational technical schools and workforce investment board offices. With technical skills in high demand, are liberal arts subjects get- ting more or less important? Students remain interested and are still opting to take liberal arts programs. In fact, our general studies program is the program with the largest enroll- ment. It prepares students to enter the workforce or transfer to a four-year col- lege or university. QCC has expanded our liberal arts and general studies pro- gramming with new degree and certifi- cate options. How are QCC and other local colleges working together to help students transfer credits and move smoothly from one degree to another? Our transfer office works diligently with public and private colleges and universities throughout the country. As a New England Association of Schools & Colleges accredited community col- lege, our credits are accepted at most other accredited colleges and universi- ties. We have articulation agreements where students can seamlessly pass from QCC to dozens of colleges across New England and the U.S. The new Commonwealth Commitment that was launched this year makes transferring even easier and offers a financial incen- tive to help families lower the cost of higher education. Any predictions about new directions higher education will be moving in over the next few years? Public higher education in Massachusetts has been responding to the governor's request to encourage more students in the commonwealth to attend college full-time and complete their degree in four years. The newly- launched Commonwealth Commitment rewards those students by offering them a seamless transfer compact and a 10-percent rebate off of tuition and mandatory fees when certain perfor- mance standards are met. This interview was conducted and edited for length and clarity by Livia Gershon, WBJ contributor. Community & Employment Construction fastest-growing employment sector in Massachusetts While total employment in the state grew 3.2 percent from January 2015, the construction industry grew 12.9 percent. Change from % Change from Jan. 2015 Jan. 2015 Employment Category Jan. March June Aug. Dec. March June Aug. to Aug. 2016 to Aug. 2016 Source: Mass. Dept. of Labor and Workforce Development. CES-790 information. Notes: Seasonally adjusted. 2015 2016 Number of workers With fewer people seeking to develop new skills, QCC offers enhanced programs Total nonfarm 3,464,000 3,476,000 3,496,000 3,508,300 3,515,400 3,537,100 3,564,700 3,576,400 112,400 3.24% Natural resources and mining 1,000 1,000 1,100 1,000 1,100 1,100 1,000 1,000 0 0.00% Construction 133,800 134,100 138,000 139,300 144,800 149,800 149,500 151,000 17,200 12.86% Manufacturing 250,800 250,800 250,700 250,500 250,400 250,100 250,400 250,400 -400 -0.16% Trade, transportation, and utilities 567,200 566,800 569,000 571,700 564,600 572,600 573,500 574,300 7,100 1.25% Wholesale trade 123,400 123,000 123,600 123,900 123,500 124,400 123,800 122,800 -600 -0.49% Retail trade 352,300 352,300 353,200 353,900 347,900 353,600 355,300 356,100 3,800 1.08% Transportation, warehousing & utilities 91,500 91,500 92,200 93,900 93,200 94,600 94,400 95,400 3,900 4.26% Information 87,600 87,900 87,500 88,000 87,700 89,000 89,100 89,200 1,600 1.83% Financial activities 218,100 218,000 218,800 221,000 221,200 221,300 222,700 224,200 6,100 2.80% Professional, scientific & business services 525,300 528,800 534,200 537,300 538,400 539,500 548,900 552,600 27,300 5.20% Education and health services 749,800 756,300 760,700 763,000 769,200 772,500 783,400 783,200 33,400 4.45% Leisure and hospitality 347,500 345,900 348,900 350,500 349,200 348,900 355,300 360,900 13,400 3.86% Other services 134,400 133,900 134,600 135,000 136,800 137,100 136,300 135,800 1,400 1.04% Government 448,500 452,500 452,700 451,000 452,000 455,200 454,600 453,800 5,300 1.18% W

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