UCM Employees Testify About Workforce Successes During House Interim Committee Hearing

From left, Rep. Louis Riggs, R-District 5; Laurel Hogue, vice provost for Online and Learning Engagement; Tim Crowley, provost and vice president for
Academic Affairs; and Clarinda Dir, Workforce and Professional Education manager, pose for a photo on Nov. 7 at the state Capitol in Jefferson City.

 

Officials from the University of Central Missouri (UCM) recently spoke about the university’s unique workforce development programs during a hearing held by the Missouri House of Representatives Special Interim Committee on Workforce Innovation and Technology.

Tim Crowley, provost and vice president for Academic Affairs; Laurel Hogue, vice provost for Online and Learning Engagement; Clarinda Dir, Workforce and Professional Education manager; and David Pearce, executive director for Governmental Relations, traveled to Jefferson City on Nov. 7 to present about UCM’s program offerings.

The interim committee has hosted six hearings and heard from 33 organizations, including only a handful of higher education institutions. Interim committees meet when the House is not in session. Rather than working on specific legislation, interim committees research topics and bring in expert witnesses.

UCM officials also testified to the Missouri House Workforce and Infrastructure Development Committee on May 8.

 

“We were incredibly honored to be asked to provide testimony twice this legislative session,” Pearce said. “The realization is they like what we’re doing in the Innovation Campus to meet workforce needs. One aspect that really resonated was how we work closely with businesses to meet their workforce needs and understand their skill competencies.”

The presentation focused on the UCM campus in Lee’s Summit, which includes the Missouri Innovation Campus (MIC) program, the Center for Workforce and Professional Education, courses for undergraduate and graduate degrees, and dual-credit programming.

The Missouri Innovation Campus program is an accelerated degree program that decreases the time and cost of earning a bachelor’s degree. It aims to reduce the skills gap while retaining talent in the Kansas City region. UCM collaborates with Metropolitan Community College, the Lee’s Summit R-7 School District and dozens of business partners to make the MIC program possible.

“They’re graduating from high school at the same time that they’re graduating with an associate’s degree from Metropolitan Community College and then transitioning to finish their last two years,” Hogue explained. “So they are graduating from the University of Central Missouri two years after high school and at 20 years old, all while they are in a three-year, year-round paid internship with some of the largest companies in the Kansas City area.”

The committee members were particularly interested in UCM’s partnerships and the two-year review cycle with businesses and faculty to ensure industry competencies are relevant. There are seven pathways for high school juniors to choose from, all focused on business and technology.

 

“You guys have struck the template,” Committee Chairman Rep. Louis Riggs, R-District 5, said of the MIC program and UCM’s partnerships with MCC and Lee’s Summit R-7. “We need to be doing what you’re doing – the whole darn state needs to be doing this.”

Dir spoke about UCM’s workforce certificate programs, which range from entry-level to professional. All certificate program students participate in Corebuilders, which helps develop soft skills that correlate to success in the work environment.

UCM is delving further into youth programming with high school pilot programs in partnership with Kansas City area school districts, offering certificate programs in health care, project management and warehousing.

“We can come in and do a certificate class – they’re in special classes that will allow them to graduate high school with their diploma, but they will also have a career certificate,” Dir said. “A lot of these students, once they get in a field they are interested in, they excel.”

Rep. Michael Johnson, D-District 23, complimented UCM for allowing the Missouri Department of Higher Education and Workforce Development (MDHEWD) and the Full Employment Council (FEC) to use office space in the MIC. Dir said it benefits the community to have those entities in the area.

UCM's emphasis on workforce development and innovation extends beyond its programs to its role as a stakeholder institution in BioNexus KC, a regional leader in advancing health care innovation. UCM's collaboration with organizations like BioNexus KC reflects its commitment to fostering interdisciplinary partnerships and aligning educational initiatives with industry needs to expand the life sciences potential in the Kansas City area.

To view the Nov. 7 hearing, click here.

For more information about the Missouri Innovation Campus, visit ucmo.edu/mic. For more information about UCM’s Workforce Development and Professional Education, visit ucmo.edu/workforce.