Community, Technology and Education: A Legislative
State Government, Legislation, and Workforce Development State Senator Bruce Thompson April 20, 2015 Introduction - Starting 2nd term in Senate - Represent portions of Bartow, Cherokee and Cobb counties - 2012 Chairman of the Bartow County Chamber of Commerce - Business Owner - All State - Automatic Covers - QuoteBurst "The search for better, for more competent men was never more vigorous than it is now. And more than ever before is the demand for competent men in excess of the supply. What we are all looking for, however, is the ready-made, competent man; the man whom someone else has trained. It is only when we fully realize that our duty, as well as our opportunity, lies in systematically cooperating to train and to make this competent man, instead of in hunting for a man whom someone else has trained, that we shall be on the road to national efficiency.” Frederick Taylor, 1911 Overview - Current Posture of our State Government Philosophy of Our State’s Leaders Legislation Observations as a Business Owner Observations as a Community Leader Where We Go From Here Questions Current Posture of Our State Government CNBC ranks Georgia: - #1 in workforce - #1 in 2012, 2013 and 2014 - #4 in 2011 - #32 in education Site Selection ranks Georgia: - #1 in labor climate Current Posture of Our State Government Fastest Growing Industries of 2014 in Georgia (% Growth): - Professional and Business Services: 5.6% - Leisure and Hospitality: 4.6% - Construction: 3.3% Largest Growth for 2014 in Georgia: - Professional and Business Services: 32,900 Jobs - Trade, Transportation and Utilities: 26,800 Jobs - Leisure and Hospitality: 18,900 Jobs Current Posture of Our State Government - Republicans hold super majority in House (120-59-1) - Republicans hold super majority in Senate (38-18) - Republicans hold all Constitutional Officer seats Philosophy of Our State’s Leaders Questions we often ask: - Does the state legislature have the authority? - Should Government play a role in developing the workforce? - Can we be effective at it? Philosophy of Our State’s Leaders - Government is reactive, not forward-thinking. - Businesses invest and innovate; Government is generally discouraged from investing. - Gaps in needed workforce in new areas for several years (ex: Programming field). - Significant fiscal benefits to having a skilled and ready workforce Philosophy of Our State’s Leaders “The General Assembly finds that it would be beneficial to students, employers, and the economic health of the state to assist in providing highly trained, technologically sophisticated, and career oriented students which will aid in the development of a successful twenty-first century work force. By opening their doors to work based learning opportunities, employers can play an active role in shaping the quality of their future work force, by preparing potential leaders for their company and their community, and by helping shape future curriculum to create an educated work force for their industry as a whole. Work based learning programs can provide students the opportunity to work and learn in a real-world environment and prepare them for future career opportunities. Such work based learning opportunities can be accomplished by developing partnerships between and among the business community, industry, students, parents, school systems, and postsecondary education institutions.” General Assembly’s findings in HB 776, as signed by the Governor Legislation “Work Based Learning Act” - HB 766 - 2014 Effective July 1, 2014 - Intent is to broaden training & class credits. - Moves more to local control of crediting by empowering local work based coordinators Current Legislation Senate Bill 2 Provides former students who did not complete high school with ways to receive a high school diploma through skill training and/or certification. Passed Senate 56-0 and is now awaiting the Governor’s signature. Current Legislation Senate Bill 2 1. State Board of Technical College System provides State BOE with areas of study that workforce is needed in. 2. State BOE relays that information to local school boards. 3. Local school boards determine if skill training performed by student is adequate and can award diploma. Current Legislation House Resolution 103 Recognizes December 10th as Georgia’s Day of Coding. - Encourages schools to enable students to take part in “Hour of Code” at Code.org during the week of Dec. 10th. - Encourages lawmakers to allow programming classes count towards required math and science credits. Adopted in House and the Senate. Current Legislation Senate Bill 89 The Digital Classrooms Act - Would require all new materials and content be purchased in digital formats and not as textbooks. - Would require schools provide a laptop or tablet for every student in every school - If signed into law, this would go into effect in 2020. Waiting on the Governor to sign. Observations as a Business Owner - Lack of talent outside of Atlanta in programming. - 18 month "ramp up" time frame in our business for programmers. - Earning potential for worker drastically lower because of training/ramp up time. Observations as a Community Leader in Bartow County Companies moving to and growing in Bartow: - Toyo employs 1100 and will grow to 1500. Investments were $500 million and will grow to $1 billion. - Voestalpine projects employment of 220 with an investment of 70 million. Phillipp Schultz, CEO, tells story of Austria workforce advantages over U.S. Observations as a Community Leader in Bartow County Companies moving to and growing in Bartow: - LakePoint-Potential 1.5 billion investment resulting in approximately 20,000 positions. - Avatron Smart Park-Initial $480 million investment resulting in approximately 2000 positions. Where Do We Go From Here? - Public/Private partnerships for faster reaction to changing fields / needs in workforce and application to education - Digital classroom materials, early introduction to computer programming "The search for better, for more competent men was never more vigorous than it is now. And more than ever before is the demand for competent men in excess of the supply. What we are all looking for, however, is the ready-made, competent man; the man whom someone else has trained. It is only when we fully realize that our duty, as well as our opportunity, lies in systematically cooperating to train and to make this competent man, instead of in hunting for a man whom someone else has trained, that we shall be on the road to national efficiency.” Frederick W. Taylor, 1911 Questions For You - How can we help you be effective as career counselors for our state’s students? - How do you think we could move at a faster pace to recognize and implement new skills and fields of study? - What are your opinions on the effectiveness of our current programs?
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