Article from the Newport News-Times

An effort is underway to - as Lebanon Schools Superintendent Jim Robinson put it - "change the conversation" between business and school leaders in Lincoln, Linn and Benton counties.

The Region 4 Workforce Investment Board met Monday at the Embarcadero in Newport, intent on connecting the board's efforts "to build and maintain a high quality workforce" with local school goals throughout their three-county region. WIB Director Steve Bekofsky and new WIB Chairman Bill McKinney said they invited all 12 school superintendents from their three-county region to the session, including Tom Rinearson from Lincoln County School District.

Rinearson and fellow LCSD administrators Joe Novello (operations), Sandi Williams (curriculum), Susan Van Lieu (special programs), and Cathy Russell (federal programs) participated, along with Pat O'Connor from Oregon Coast Community College.

WIB leaders and members say Oregon's Workforce Investment Act provides an opportunity to build dynamic, far-reaching, wide-ranging public-private partnerships "to improve the economic well-being of its citizens and communities." They want to promote a keener awareness between the region's employers and workforce development system about workforce needs, and "the importance of investing in the development of their own workforces."

McKinney, who is with OSU Federal Credit Union in Corvallis, and other WIB leaders want to focus on education as a key to creating the "competitive companies, productive people, and innovative ideas" Oregon businesses need to compete in the global marketplace. Employers must have ready access to workers with the knowledge and skills that provide the continuous agility and innovation necessary for success in a technology-driven economy.

WIB operates four Workforce Development Centers, where job seekers and employers can find resources and support to help them reach their goals. The board sub-contracts with the Community Services Consortium to deliver both adult and youth services, and works closely with other public agency partners that collectively comprise the state's WorkSource system.

But something is missing from the articulation between business and education.

"We have a real challenge hiring the kind of people we are looking for," McKinney told the 50 folks who participated in Monday's session.

From his perspective, the first flotsam from Oregon's long-predicted labor crisis and labor shortage has already washed ashore. Too many prospective employees lack requisite "soft" skills, among them personal grooming, getting to work on time, showing initiative, and the ability to communicate clearly, verbally and in writing.

Oregon WIB has a strategic plan "to transform Oregon's workforce education and training system."

Based on the premise that Oregon workers "want good jobs, prosperity, and a secure future," and Oregon businesses "need agile, innovative workers to compete," the plan focuses on current workers who need additional training to reach maximum productivity or move into higher-paying jobs, transitional workers (those who are either unemployed or changing jobs) who need assistance, training, or upgraded skills, and "emerging workers" - future workers who are currently in K-12 or post-secondary education.

"We all need to find ways to support the schools in developing a world class workforce," McKinney stated in a July 31 letter to WIB members, setting the stage for Monday's session in Newport.

The cross-section of business, public agency, and school representatives focused on emerging workers, and what business and education leaders can collectively do to foster smooth transitions between school and work for all students.

Oregon State University's Dean of Education Sam Stern moderated an open forum aimed at enhancing shared understanding of educator and employer interests and concerns, and identifying possible collaborations between educators and employers.

"Our conversation today is about success for all of our students," Stern noted.

Business participants stressed how critical the basic soft skills are, especially among those who go directly from high school into the workforce. Lack of such skills can hinder even the brightest young people with great potential

"We need to determine at what point in our history did those soft skills go away or change," said Tom Rinearson. "It's important for employers to hear what we hear. Employers are telling us the skills students need to get into a four-year college are the same skills they need to get into an internship. We're being told that's the skill set they (employers) want."

Everything boiled down to "work readiness" and the ability to adapt to circumstances that change at a frenzied pace.

Talking about "vocational track" versus "academic track" is obsolete, some said. Oregon, they suggested, needs to move toward integrating academic and "hands-on stuff" to provide a "right" set of skills that allows students to choose between work or college, and succeed either way. Teaching young people the critical thinking skills they can use to adapt, so they can easily move from one job, one school, or one mindset to another is also a vital aspect.

School-business partnerships make sense, some pointed out, because "we're all looking for the same thing."

Educators want students who get to school on time, ready to learn. Employers want workers who arrive on time, ready to work.

At the end of the session, McKinney asked for volunteers to form an ad hoc task force "to explore the next steps, and keep us focused on the issue." The task force will distill the ideas gleaned from the forum, and determine the next step in the process.

"We have educators who would love to have better relationships with business owners, and business owners who want to be more involved in schools," Stern concluded. "There's a real spirit of collaboration, and a real sense of caring about the big picture."

Terry Dillman is a reporter for the News-Times. He can be reached at 265-8571 ext. 225, or terry.dillman@lee.net