Hudson Valley Community College is building a workforce training center it says will address a worker shortage in the region.
Thousands of trades jobs are projected to open in the Hudson Valley in coming years, but there is a shortage of workers with the proper training to fill the roles.
HVCC President Roger Ramsammy says the Applied Technology Education Center at the Troy campus will train the so-called invisible workforce: those who are ready and able to work, but are passed over by employers.
“Whether it's three months of training and credit or non-credit, six months of training in credit or non-credit or one year, or whether they decide to go on for degrees,” Ramsammy said.
Speaking Wednesday, Ramsammy said the training is needed more than ever.
“Right now, there's approximately 17 million unfilled skilled trades and applied related jobs that are vacant. 17 million. Do you think that number in the workforce of 300 million, of which more than half are kids underneath 18. It means that that's a terrible number for the United States,” Ramsammy said.
Ramsammy says the Hudson Valley is seeing a sharp increase in openings for skilled workers.
“Just in our region, we experienced unprecedented demands for electricians, electrical engineers, HVAC, mechatronic technician, semiconductor manufacturing technicians, welders, welding fabricators, electric and autonomous vehicle technicians and more,” Ramsammy said.
Ramsammy says the electric car industry is just one driver of the need.
The $85 million dollar workforce training center will contain 130,000 square feet of space to provide training in trades fields, such as electrical or contracting work, among others. The college expects it to be open in 2026.
Don Fein, of Callanan Industries, says HVCC provides opportunities that wouldn’t be available otherwise.
“My 13 years here as a Hudson Valley trustee, all my former trustees, fellow trustees who are here now made a firsthand difference for me what Hudson Valley education makes for students, especially for those who have not had the chance to pursue higher education without Hudson Valley. It also has been important for those who need training in the skilled trades to fill the roles that Callanan and many other Capital Region companies need to be successful here,” Fein said.
Renee Powell of the Capital Region NAACP says the new facility will make the area even more attractive for industry development.
“The center will not only meet the needs of all the students, it will make the Capital Region a desirable location for new state of the art businesses that will bring employment opportunities with good paying jobs," Powell said.
Powell added that ATEC will provide for socioeconomic advancement as well.
“This center will address one part of the equation to minimize the effects if not destroy systemic, low and non-living wages that plagues marginalized and underserved communities, which most of the invisible workers live in," Powell said.
Ramsammy says ATEC represents a shift in thinking about the purpose of education.
“I just came back from Budapest for the World Congress summit. All the countries, most of them that were there from Europe are already doing this. Degrees matters no more. It is about the skills that company needs that matters,” Ramsammy said.
Ramsammy says the vast majority of HVCC graduates stay and work in the Capital Region.
For WAMC News in Troy, I’m Alexander Babbie.
