Our new Strategic Plan is gaining significant traction in many areas. With updated vision and mission statements, our work is increasingly focused. With new statements of values and purpose, our work is increasingly collaborative. Part of our Statement of Purpose highlights our endeavors to support community and economic development. One of our five strategic priorities is a focus on creative partnerships with a strategic direction to expand workforce development efforts. To expand our capacity in workforce development, we recently resourced this area with a new organizational structure and staffing pattern in our Center for Corporate and Community Education (CCED) and found a tremendous return on investment. When layoffs happen or workplace technologies shift, CCED gets creatively nimble. Working closely with our faculty and other experts, CCED delivers credit and non-credit learning opportunities where they're needed most.
In 2007-2008, 6,617 students took non-credit classes - that's about as many as the number who took credit classes at MVCC. About 13% of these students took professional development courses like phlebotomy, computer skills, or other training to upgrade their professional value in the marketplace. Another 23% were enrolled through courses and workshops specific to the workplace through training contracts with local employers (nearly 1,500 workers)! The largest portion of the enrollment (64%) came through registrations in community education - everything from ballroom dancing to swimming to yoga. Even the community education arena has taken a workforce development focus, with the addition of 9 career camps in our College for Kids summer programming.
CCED is intended to operate on a "break-even/no loss" basis. In 2007-08, revenues (including grants and contracts) exceeded $1.2 million with a positive margin over expenses of more than $100,000 to the good - a 13.6% increase over the previous year. The Center maintains more than 50 partnerships and serves as a beacon for our creative partnerships priority. With additional staff and their refined roles and responsibilities, I fully anticipate the role of CCED to grow in significance as we find new and meaningful ways to serve the educational and training needs of our community and business partners. If you have any thoughts on workforce or community development, contact me at presblog@mvcc.edu.
About Me
- Dr. Randall VanWagoner
- My general background can be found here.
My blog presents me with an opportunity to give a more non-traditional profile of myself. I have listed my strategic themes, or strengths, as identified through the StrengthsFinder instrument from the Gallup organization.
1. Maximizer: "Excellence, not average, is your measure. Transforming something strong into something superb takes just as much effort but is much more thrilling."
2. Strategic: You can sort through the clutter and find the best route. It is a distinct way of thinking that allows you to see patterns where others simply see complexity."
3. Arranger: "When faced with a complex situation involving many factors, you enjoy managing all of the variables, aligning and realigning them until you are sure you have arranged them in the most productive configuration possible."
4. Learner: "You have a great desire to learn and want to continuously improve."
5. Includer: "You accept others and show awareness of those who feel left out and make an effort to include them.."