Wadhwani Foundation Chooses Anne Arundel Community College/National STEM Consortium as its First Job Training Partner in the U.S.

December, 17, 2013. ARNOLD, MD—The Wadhwani Foundation, a nonprofit organization located in Palo Alto, Calif., recently announced its partnership with Anne Arundel Community College/National STEM Consortium for the transformation of curriculum for the Cyber Technology Certificate Program designed to prepare entry-level cyber technology workers for career pathways in information technology (IT). 

The purpose of the partnership is to launch the Foundation’s first U.S.-based job training initiative, Race to a Job (RTAJ).

Building upon the transformative work already completed by the U.S. Department of Labor-funded National STEM Consortium (NSC), the partnership for RTAJ seeks to introduce the use of educational technology in the delivery of the Cyber Technology Certificate. Trainees will come from a diversity of backgrounds and will upgrade their skills and gain stackable credentials to further their careers.

The partnership aims to meet sector demands. According to the 2013 Burning Glass International Inc. report on Cybersecurity Jobs, employer demand has grown exponentially in the last five years – 3.5 times faster than computer jobs and 12 times faster than the labor market overall. The report also states that cybersecurity job postings are also three times as likely to request a certification, as compared to other computer jobs.

Convenient, online instruction for working participants

The Race to a Job training will be delivered in a blended learning format, leveraging both online off-line and hybrid teaching and it will also use state-of-the-art interactive, multimedia, and gaming technologies.

The delivery of instruction will support the hectic schedules of working participants, and will serve as a model for other educational programs around the U.S. Courses will be offered through a “cloud”-based delivery system—interacting a large number of computers connected through a real-time communication network such as the Internet—to support both online and offline learning strategies. Participants will have ready online access to their instructors, as well as the opportunity to interact with each other, through digital-support networks.

“AACC is excited to again be at the forefront of innovation in learning and workforce development,” said AACC President Dr. Dawn Lindsay. “It is wonderful to be able to sustain and scale the curriculum that the National STEM Consortium has created to serve even more workers by improving their skills and increasing their earning potential.”

Digitizing a curriculum and providing a model for other programs

Leveraging more than a decade of experience in high-impact economic acceleration in India, the Wadhwani Foundation’s first initiative in the U.S., Race to a Job, is designed to transform the delivery system for workforce development in America.

According to Wadhwani Foundation CEO, Dr. Ajay Kela, “What Massively Open Online Courses (MOOCs) have done for access to academic education, and what Khan Academy has done for the delivery of math education, is what the Wadhwani Foundation seeks to do for the delivery of workforce education through Race to a Job.”  

The first step in the Race to a Job pilot program will be to analyze and digitize the Cyber Technology Certificate curriculum jointly developed and in use now at AACC and NSC partner colleges Cuyahoga Community College, Florida State College at Jacksonville, Ivy Tech Community College and Northwest Arkansas Community College. That digitization will involve subject matter experts from AACC and NSC, as well as cyber technology employers and instructional designer professionals. Technology vendors then will be contracted through a rigorous proposal selection process to build the enhanced digital content. 

A dedicated team of content and instructional experts

“This initiative directly supports and augments the innovative curriculum development that has already taken place,” said Susan Gallagher, Project Director, NSC. “It will provide participants with enhanced learning opportunities in an immersive technological environment.”

Completion of the Cyber Technology Certificate will prepare students for careers in a variety of sectors, ranging from security and defense to health care and retail, making credentialed students competitive for positions with some of the nation’s leading employers, including: ARINC, Walmart, Northrop Grumman, Lockheed Martin; Citi, Ernst & Young; Kaiser Permanente; Target and CVS.

Among those attending a formal signing ceremony of the Memorandum of Agreement at AACC to commemorate the partnership were Wadhwani Foundation CEO Dr. Ajay Kela, AACC President Dr. Dawn S. Lindsay, AACC Vice President for Learning Dr. Karen Hays and Fred Ferrer, Chief, Critical Infrastructure/Key Resources Branch - Anti-Terrorism Division, Maryland Coordination and Analysis Center.

The Wadhwani Foundation, founded in 2003 by Dr. Romesh Wadhwani, an IT entrepreneur in Silicon Valley, California, is a not-for-profit organization focused on high-impact, niche activities leading to accelerated economic development. Its mission is to help individuals achieve their full potential, regardless of background. The Foundation works in India on five specific initiatives: • National Entrepreneurship Network (NEN) • Skills Development Network (SDN): Race to a Job Global • Opportunity Network for Disabled (ODN) • Research and Innovation Network (RIN)• India-US Policy. http://www.wadhwani-foundation.org  

Race to a Job (RTAJ) is an initiative of the Wadhwani Foundation, with operations in India and the United States. RTAJ leverages technology to meet the demands of the global skills gap by partnering with industry to develop and deploy jobs-driven curriculum and vocational training through a unique blend of online and offline learner-centric strategies.

Anne Arundel Community College is an award winning, fully accredited public two-year institution serving approximately 53,000 students each year through classes offered at more than 100 sites in Anne Arundel County, Maryland or online. AACC is one of a select group of community colleges nationwide designated as a National Center of Academic Excellence in Information Assurance Two Year Education (CAE2Y) by the NSA and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. AACC was the first academic institution to be designated as a National Center of Digital Forensics Academic Excellence (CDFAE) by the Defense Cyber Crime Center (DC3). AACC offers national and regional studies leading to a degree, certificate, industry credential, transfer to a four-year institution or career enhancement, personal enrichment and lifelong learning. http://www.aacc.edu/

National STEM Consortium   (NSC) The National STEM Consortium is a collaborative of ten leading community colleges in nine states funded with a $19,730,281 U.S. Department of Labor grant to develop nationally portable, certificate-level programs in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) and to build a national model of multi-college cooperation in the design and delivery of high quality, labor market-driven occupational certificate programs. The certificate-level credential is a missing, but critical, on-ramp to career pathways for adult learners and others who often lack access to and awareness of high-demand careers in STEM fields.

The NSC targets five high-wage, high-skill STEM pathways: composite materials technology; cyber technology; electric vehicle technology; environmental technology; and mechatronics. These fields were selected based on member colleges’ local workforce needs and projected careers in which students could expect a strong return on their investment in higher education. Programming is designed for TAA-impacted, unemployed and underemployed workers. The STEM credentials average 30 credit hours and are designed to be completed in one year, and all completers receive an industry-validated college certificate. http://www.nationalstem.org/