Cayuga Community College in upstate New York has a $267.8 million impact on its regional economy, according to a socioeconomic study done by EMSI. The report was commissioned to provide an independent assessment of the college’s socioeconomic contribution to its service area, [CCC president Daniel P] Larson noted. “It helps us fulfill our obligation for [...]
Jun. 1, 2009 | Posted by Joshua WrightWith manufacturing sites shutting down and the unemployment rate approaching 14%, the need for career and job-placement services has become vital in the Pendleton, SC, area. To help meet this demand and refine its own program evaluation process, Tri-County Technical College (TCTC) is using Job Finder, a new career exploration tool from EMSI that takes [...]
May. 27, 2009 | Posted by Joshua WrightJay Pryor Business Consultant Heartland Works, Inc. Topeka, Kansas Jay Pryor uses EMSI’s labor market and impact analysis when he has data requests from agencies in the Topeka area and adjoining counties that require a timely response. Recently a regional chamber of commerce approached Pryor looking for economic impact assessments of three bids for a [...]
May. 22, 2009 | Posted by Joshua WrightSummary: This paper is meant as a practical guide to help workforce, education, economic development professionals (and any other sort of career counselor) understand green jobs and be able to offer solid advice to young people and jobseekers so they can get on the right track and in the context of the demands of the [...]
May. 20, 2009 | Posted by Joshua WrightFor administrators at Tidewater Community College, taking a careful look at regional labor market trends and projections has become an essential element of program development. A prime example is TCC’s nursing school, which got a significant boost thanks to a foundation that was convinced through timely data to donate $1.4 million. For a PDF of [...]
May. 18, 2009 | Posted by Joshua WrightBethany Chaney Program Advisor YouthBuild USA Carrboro, North Carolina Bethany Chaney uses EMSI’s data analysis to help leaders and low-income students in local YouthBuild programs get a feel for high-growth, high-demand occupations in their area and understand the skills and competencies needed to fit those jobs. Chaney works as a program advisor from Carrboro, NC, [...]
May. 15, 2009 | Posted by Joshua WrightWith the recent closing of a major GM plant and the shuttering/downsizing of other companies, few areas have felt the impact of the recession more than southwest Wisconsin. To respond, local planners are using labor market data and regional partnerships to help the area gradually recover. For a PDF of the case study click here [...]
May. 8, 2009 | Posted by Joshua WrightPam Matheson Research Specialist Greenfield Community College Greenfield, Massachusetts A data-driven regional report from EMSI has been instrumental in Greenfield Community College’s overhaul of its strategic enrollment management plan. The “Regional Scan and Program Demand” report gave Pam Matheson and her colleagues vital demographic and education data, as well as a look at northwest Massachusetts’ [...]
May. 5, 2009 | Posted by Joshua WrightMid-Plains Community College in North Platte, Nebraska, had an $89.3 million impact in 2006-07 for its 18-county service area, a recent EMSI impact study concluded. That total comes from the accumulated credits of former and current MPCC students, which result in higher earnings and increased employer profits. In his review of the EMSI study, Dr. [...]
Apr. 24, 2009 | Posted by Joshua WrightRebecca Bloomquist Special Projects Coordinator – High Country Workforce Development Board Region D High Country Council of Governments Boone, North Carolina Rebecca Bloomquist used EMSI’s database of labor market trends and projections to help Appalachian State University target high-growth industries and occupations for one of its college awareness programs. GEAR UP (Gaining Early Awareness and [...]
Apr. 23, 2009 | Posted by Joshua WrightLike much of the Rust Belt, north central Ohio has been hit hard by the manufacturing sector’s decline. In the last two years, however, regional education providers and local planners have used a bioscience initiative to help create high-wage opportunities for the workforce in a predominantly rural area. For a PDF of the case study: [...]
Apr. 22, 2009 | Posted by Joshua WrightWhen Palm Beach Community College began to investigate adding what would be its first-ever bachelor’s program, it made sure to pick an offering that would meet the needs of a high-growth regional industry. After surveying industry trends and their associated workforce needs, PBCC opted for a four-year applied science program in supervision and management. To [...]
Apr. 21, 2009 | Posted by Joshua WrightSince the 1970s, former industrial sites in Rome, NY, have deteriorated, leaving behind abandoned buildings after the closure of companies like General Cable Corporation. City leaders, the Environmental Protection Agency, and other organizations have started to clean up the plots of land and use them for redevelopment purposes. To read the case study in PDF [...]
Apr. 7, 2009 | Posted by Joshua WrightData spotlight: Using input-output analysis, economic base, and fiscal impact modeling to determine the best project Last month we considered regional investments that would create jobs (green or otherwise) on the basis of multiplier effects, long-term vs. short-term effects, and the relative cost per job created. To review this article, click here. This month we [...]
Apr. 2, 2009 | Posted by Joshua WrightApril, 2009 By: M. Henry Robison, Founder and Senior Economist, EMSI contact information: Rob Sentz (rob@economicmodeling.com) For a PDF version of the paper: IO guidebook Introduction Our nation’s economic woes have led to many ideas for the best way to transform our economy and get it back on track. Many of these ideas are rooted [...]
Apr. 2, 2009 | Posted by Joshua WrightWith Alabama lawmakers bracing for difficult budget issues in the 2009 legislative session, one state-funded organization that provides critical workforce training and economic development incentives decided to take a proactive approach to show its value with a dollar-and-cents assessment. To read the case study in PDF format: ROI report helps Alabama training institute demonstrate its [...]
Mar. 25, 2009 | Posted by Joshua WrightA record number of home foreclosures and soaring unemployment have left the Ocala, Florida, region trying to cope with the economic slowdown. To help people get back to work, the workforce board and its partners are preparing the area’s labor force for a proposed $17 billion nuclear plant. To read the case study in PDF [...]
Mar. 19, 2009 | Posted by Joshua WrightLabor market projections from EMSI helped the San Bernardino Community College District land a $2 million Community-Based Job Training Grant from the U.S. Department of Labor that will go toward a Nanotechnology Training Center. The announcement comes on the heels of a $400,000 grant SBCCD was awarded in 2007 from the California Community College’s Chancellor’s [...]
Mar. 16, 2009 | Posted by Joshua WrightJosh Grodzin Director, Economic Development Choose DuPage Lisle, Illinois Josh Grodzin uses EMSI’s data analysis to help publish quarterly economic indicator reports for DuPage County. The reports are intended to give a quick snapshot of the county’s diverse economy – everything from the unemployment rate to the number of building permits issued to occupied industrial [...]
Mar. 4, 2009 | Posted by Joshua WrightMary Beth Marshall Executive Director DuPage Workforce Board Lisle, Illinois EMSI’s labor market and education data played a key role in a Workforce Boards of Metropolitan Chicago report that highlights the growing need to bolster the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) skills of the region’s workforce. The Chicago area has dealt with a rash [...]
Mar. 4, 2009 | Posted by Joshua WrightGreen Jobs, part 3: A data-driven approach to defining, quantifying, and harnessing the green economy To read Green Pathways (PDF): EMSI green jobs part 3 data spotlight Summary At the local level, the discussion of green jobs should be rooted in data as much as possible. As regions consider major investments in the green economy [...]
Mar. 4, 2009 | Posted by Joshua WrightAsheville-Buncombe Technical Community College in North Carolina contributes nearly $400 million to its service area, according to a recent EMSI impact study. That amounts to about 4.4% of the area’s total annual income. Here’s an excerpt from an A-B Tech news release: The report concluded that A-B Tech plays a significant role in the local [...]
Mar. 3, 2009 | Posted by Joshua WrightWith California community colleges seeking to understand how the growth of green jobs will affect workforce education and training, the state’s 10 Centers of Excellence came together to discuss how best to approach the issue. One of the outcomes for Michelle Marquez, director of the Central Valley Region Center of Excellence, was to dive into [...]
Mar. 3, 2009 | Posted by Joshua WrightAcross the country, states are adapting to tough economic conditions by trimming higher education budgets. And even though most lawmakers recognize the important role community and technical colleges play in the development of regional economies, two-year schools continue to face massive cuts. To make sure that the state of Washington continues to recognize and understand [...]
Feb. 17, 2009 | Posted by Joshua WrightShortly after Bill Finch took office as Mayor of Bridgeport, Connecticut, in 2008, he started the Small and Minority Business Resource Center (SMBRC). Its goal is to help small business owners thrive by providing training and assistance they can use to earn construction, architectural, and/or engineering contracts. One of the center’s first projects was to [...]
Feb. 12, 2009 | Posted by Joshua WrightIntroduction The workforce investment system is in the national spotlight with the emergence of two very big issues: the increasing knowledge and skills gap in the nation’s workforce, and mass layoffs as a result of the current economic turmoil. And because these problems are so pervasive, it is important that local groups join with their [...]
Feb. 4, 2009 | Posted by Joshua WrightGreen Jobs, part 2 – Assessing Workforce and Economic Impacts, Return on Investment of stimulus projects Last month we took a look at some occupations that would likely be affected by the new administration’s “green policy.” To review last month’s article click here. This month we want to bring in more perspectives like working layoff [...]
Feb. 4, 2009 | Posted by Joshua WrightDick Seib Research and Planning Specialist Western Technical College La Crosse, Wisconsin Western Technical College has used a “Regional Scan and Program Demand” report produced by EMSI as an essential resource for planning for educational programs to support regional workforce needs. Before the customized report, information about occupations and industries in the college region in [...]
Feb. 2, 2009 | Posted by Joshua WrightBrock Terry GIS Analyst Illinois Institute for Rural Affairs Western Illinois University Macomb, Illinois When major floods inundated parts of Illinois in 2008, Brock Terry and his colleagues at the Illinois Institute for Rural Affairs were commissioned to look at the impacted areas to see what industries were affected on a ZIP code level. A [...]
Feb. 2, 2009 | Posted by Joshua WrightHolly Peoples Director of Business Services Michigan Works! Job Force Board Escanaba, Michigan With Michigan’s unemployment rate hovering near 10%, the highest in the U.S., Holly Peoples at Michigan Works! Job Force Board understands the value of assessing dislocated workers’ skill sets and looking for crosswalks to high-demand jobs. That sort of transition analysis is [...]
Feb. 2, 2009 | Posted by Joshua WrightThe EMSI Blog provides data, links, articles, and other information related to labor market trends, regional economics and workforce and economic development.
Joshua Wright is a member of the EMSI marketing team and manages the EMSI blog. If you have any questions, comments, or article ideas, please email him.
