The third quarter meeting of the Tennessee Tech Transfer and Economic Development Council, convened by Global Action Platform, provided a forum to showcase three significant workforce development programs in various stages of implementation across Tennessee.  The three initiatives, while created separately from each other and led by different organizations, are connected like a group of nested Russian dolls.  The three illustrate a regional community-based model at scale, an industry-government agency model, and a university-based model.

Empower Upper Cumberland:  Regional Community-Based Collective Impact Model

The first initiative to be presented to the Council was Empower Upper Cumberland, a regional “poverty to prosperity” initiative being facilitated in 14 counties in the Upper Cumberland region.  The goal for this large-scale regional project is to move 700+ families out of poverty into well-paying jobs and careers.

Out of the 700+ families identified to participate in the program, 474 are employed but work less than 33 hours per week and 63 work more than one job.  In terms of education in the group, 7 have a Master’s Degree, 41 have a Bachelor’s Degree, 42 have an Associate’s Degree, 91have a TCAT Certificate, and 192 have started, but not completed a TCAT Certificate.

One of the principal barriers preventing these families, and others among the working poor, from moving out of poverty is the so-called “Cliff Effect.”  Currently, state and federal assistance programs have an absolute cut off at family income over $33,000/year.  At $33,001, state and federal financial assistance stops.  The loss of financial support for childcare, food, housing, healthcare, and so forth is a $25,000financial loss per family.  Hence, family income of these families would need to increase from $33,000 to at least $65-70,000/year to make economic sense.

Increasing workforce skills and certification, thus, is critical to move families out of poverty.  Empower Upper Cumberland is developing regional partnerships with companies, nonprofits, and Tennessee Tech University to develop programs that can enable these initial 700+ families to access coordinated wrap around services as they gain the skills needed for skilled employment.  Regional business in Upper Cumberland, Middle, and East Tennessee all need many more skilled workers in many fields, so the opportunity is there.

In partnership with eTransX, the initiative is using an advanced technology platform to integrate and connect the programs and services already available in the region and to make communications easier and more targeted to the needs nd concerns of the families involved. By coordinating existing “wrap around services,” and supporting appropriate communications, the Wellbeing Care Community Platform is critical infrastructure for large number transitions from poverty.

Empower Upper Cumberland is a regional collective impact initiative facilitated by the Upper Cumberland Development District Office, with funding from the State of Tennessee.  Based on the success of the pilot, the project aims to create a replicable model that can be shared with other regions and communities across Tennessee.

Empower Upper Cumberland illustrates a broad, regional, community-based approach to move a meaningful number of families out of poverty.

A link to the presentation is here: Empower Upper Cumberland Update TN Tech Transfer Council 09-19-24.pdf

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ORAU Partnership for Nuclear Energy--Tennessee Nuclear Energy Workforce Center:  An Industry-Government Agency-Based Model

Oak Ridge Associated Universities (ORAU) is a national and international leader in nuclear energy.  Founded in 1946, ORAU today operates a consortium of 158 universities in 25 locations with 965 employees and annual revenues of $466M.  With over36 state and federal customers, ORAU programs engage nearly 10K per year.

Building on its 75 years of leadership, ORAU is advancing the field of nuclear energy through a series of unique national, regional, and local collaborative partnerships in the nuclear energy industry sector, including,

·        Partnership for Nuclear Energy(PNE)--the only coordinated national and state level effort focused on public-private partnerships for nuclear energy.  The goal of the PNE is to build in Tennessee the top performing, globally competitive nuclear hub in the US, driven by the most advanced and innovative workforce in the country.  To achieve this goal, PNE is building capacity and action plans in four critical areas:  1) facilitating creation of a National Strategy, Gaps, and Recommendations; 2) creation of the Nuclear Energy Academic Alliance; 3) modernizing training in the nuclear power sector through creation of the Innovative Technology for Nuclear Training initiative; and 4) advancing International Impact for the efforts here.

·        Nuclear Energy Academic Alliance(NEAA)-- the only coordinated consortium that spans from preschool to PhD, dedicated to advancing the field of nuclear energy education and training fields.  The NEAA will provide ongoing insights into the scope and range of educational and skills programs offered Pre-K to 16 and a platform for coordinated improvements in the field.

·        Tennessee Nuclear Energy Workforce Center (TNEWC)—the only local and regional hub workforce model driving collective impact in nuclear energy education, training, and workforce development. TNEWC will convene the state agencies and other critical stakeholders and academic institutions in partnership with Global Action Platform to create a cross-sector collective impact shared agenda, metrics, and roadmap to build in Tennessee the world’s most highly skilled and innovative workforce in the nuclear energy field, thereby placing Tennessee in a leading position as a globally competitive hub for clean energy.

The link to the ORAU presentation is here:

CREST FORUM:  A University-Based Model        

The Coalition Responsible for Equitable Skills Training (CREST) has been created bythe biotech leadership cohort selected by Global Action Platform to participate in the Young American Leaders Program at the Harvard Business School in2022.  The goal of the initiative is to design and implement a cross-sector collaboration of academic, corporate, and community-based organizations (CBOs) to enable individuals from underserved and underrepresented communities to move into skilled employment in biotech positions in Middle Tennessee.

Funded with a $1M grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) in January 2024,CREST has now completed its initial design and successfully tested its approach in the summer of 2024.  The design creates an ecosystem for onboarding participants through a network of CBOs to participate in an accelerated skills certification process, and upon completion, to move into full time employment in a local biotech company.  

CREST leadership, based at the Wondr’y at Vanderbilt University, led the ecosystem design and facilitated the collaboration of CBOs, educational institutions, and corporations.  Distinctively, CREST deploys an accelerated educational program that moves adults with no prior biology background or knowledge to national biotech certification for entry level wet lab employment in 90 days. Since the target population for the program work minimum wage jobs(around $11/hr.) and cannot afford to give up their jobs for the 90-day course, they are paid $20/hr. and are guaranteed full time employment upon certification.

After graduating its first participants, CREST is now exploring how its model can be applied in other fields, as well as pre-certification offerings, which biotech companies have requested.  CREST is also sharing its findings with a network of other universities and seeking new partnerships for replicating the approach and increasing impact.

CREST illustrates how a workforce program can develop from an educational base to advance shared prosperity and economic growth through collaboration and innovative skills training.

The link to the CREST presentation is here:  Tennessee Tech Transfer Council -- CREST NSF.Q3.pdf

New Collaborative Outcomes

As a result of the presentations and discussions at the Council, new collaborations emerged among these three workforce initiatives.  

1.       A new channel of communication was established between Empower Upper Cumberland and the Partnership for Nuclear Energy to create communications and career pathways for families in the Upper Cumberland to gain the knowledge and skills required to meet workforce needs in the nuclear energy hub developing in East Tennessee and to provide a path from poverty to prosperity for those families.  

2.       The CREST biotech training and accelerated certification process shared at the Council prompted linkages both to Upper Cumberland and ORAU.  The CREST model can be adapted for nuclear energy and used as a process in the new Tennessee Nuclear Energy Workforce Center. The model also meets needs for Empower Upper Cumberland to offer bridge training and opportunities in biotech.  

3.       The Council session sharing the three projects opened a cross-sector dialogue to continue after the meeting to leverage and interconnect the regional, industry, and academic models represented by the three projects.

4.       A new collaboration outside Tennessee with Purdue University, the University of Michigan, and Virginia Tech around nuclear workforce development was also proposed as an outcome of the Council meeting.  

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