The U.S. Department of Transportation Joint Program Office has extended a third round of funding to the National Network for the Transportation Workforce (NNTW) to assist in curricular and workforce development in support of its Intelligent Transportation Systems Professional Capacity Building (ITS PCB) program.
The NNTW will continue its work to support the Academic programs of the ITS PCB program, building new teaching case studies, expanding the library of professional and project profiles, formalizing a speakers bureau to enhance the teaching of ITS concepts in classes, and expanding ITS workforce efforts across the educational continuum, as well as tackling new areas for training in working with rural and tribal partners. Some highlights of past efforts are available at https://www.nntw.org/workforce-initiatives/intelligent-transportation-systems/. Future updates and work will also be available at this site.
Apprenticeship Program Best Practices Guide
The Highway Construction Apprenticeship Development Guide—a companion piece to the Playbook—was developed by CITT’s Education and Workforce Development Analyst Deanna Matsumoto and Research Assistant Caitlin Mace, as part of a Southwest Transportation Workforce Center grant awarded to CITT by FHWA. As part of her work, Matsumoto and a team of research assistants conducted semi-structured telephone interviews with the Working Groups/Task Forces for ten out of the twelve HCWP pilot locations in order to gain insight on each Working Group’s best practices. The Guide matches pilot program recommendations with plays from the Playbook. A future update of the FHWA Playbook will incorporate CITT’s work to produce a final, comprehensive document.
The Guide also develops additional recommendations for future career development programs, building upon those addressed in the Playbook. It recommends implementing many progressive strategies for outreach such as using social media to recruit workers, creating a “no wrong door” policy that seeks to fit potential workers into positions that best suit their skills, and targeting areas where mobility infrastructure development was a high need, thereby facilitating economic development for communities through mobility in addition to job creation. Other innovative recommendations included facilitating childcare services for employees, addressing transportation obstacles through ride-sharing and similar programs, and case management services to assist with external factors that play into career success such as housing, food insecurity, substance abuse, and financial literacy education. These recommendations were all pulled from best practices identified through the interviews with the FHWA Pilot Program managers.
On April 3, 2020 Dr. Jean-Paul Rodrigue, Professor of Global Studies & Geography at Hofstra University, New York and a member of METRANS’ MetroFreight research center, presented his research on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on transportation to METRANS Advisory Board, faculty, and staff. Titled “Coronavirus Impacts on Trade and Supply Chains,” the presentation focused on the effects of the unfolding COVID-19 pandemic on international trade and supply chains. Rodrigue was invited by METRANS Director, Professor and Ferraro Chair in Effective Local Government at the University of Southern California, Dr. Genevieve Giuliano. “METRANS is fortunate to have a deep bench of experts from which we can draw,” Giuliano noted. “Professor Rodrigue not only is one of the world’s experts in international trade, but also conducted a research project on the potential impact of a pandemic on global supply chains. He is uniquely qualified to tell us what we can expect from this pandemic.”