Building the Workforce for Indiana

As I visit with leaders in our city and learn about the opportunities that our region affords, it is clear to me that talent and workforce needs are a top priority. In their Indiana Prosperity 2035 plan, the Indiana Chamber notes that currently the proportion of Hoosiers with a bachelor’s degree or higher is 29%, and the goal is to increase this to 40% by 2035. Additionally, the region needs to double the proportion of residents with postsecondary credentials in STEM-related fields. When I lay this against the fact that close to 90% of our undergraduate students at IU Indy choose to live and work here after they graduate, we have an opportunity to make a real difference in meeting the workforce needs of the region.

Our seamless admissions policies, the introduction of the Groups Scholars Program, the dual credit courses we offer to high school students and the multiple outreach activities with the K-12 community will help us play a significant role in achieving the goals for the state. At the same time, we have the opportunity to innovate in what we do and how we do it. Last week’s annual retreat for the IU Indianapolis Council of Deans featured Jamie Merisotis, president of the Lumina Foundation, as our keynote speaker. Jamie’s books, America Needs Talent and Human Work, are about innovations that higher education should consider that can bring about sustainable change.

Some questions for us to all think about:

Competency-based education

• Can we more systematically incorporate credit for prior learning to streamline the path to an undergraduate degree?
• What types of apprenticeship programs or work experiences could provide learning outcomes comparable to those offered in our degree programs?

As technology becomes an enabler of efficiency in the workplace, the ‘human’ aspects of the work we do will be highlighted and rewarded.

• Are we doing enough in our curriculum to help our students understand that skills like effective and engaging communications, critical thinking and decision making are going to be even more highly valued in the workplace of tomorrow?
• Are we doing enough to help our students understand that these ‘soft’ skills can be the hard currency in the workplace?

Earlier this month, I also had the opportunity to talk to our Undergraduate Affairs committee, which is working on the general education curriculum. The individuals on this committee care deeply about our students and are keen to do more to make our curriculum rigorous but also relevant. On the topic of relevance, in my conversations with industry leaders, the skills in demand, no matter the type of business (for profit or non-profit), no matter the firm size (small, medium or large), and no matter the nature of the industry (STEM, or other), are communications skills, digital fluency, project management, and—of course—critical thinking. Can we incorporate some of these into our required curriculum for every major? Can we include parts of this into our first-year seminar that we expect all students to take?

We have an opportunity to make a real difference to workforce development for the region. I welcome your ideas on these topics.

Go Jags!

Latha Ramchand
Chancellor