U of A Launches Campuswide Workforce Development Initiative

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The Office of the Provost and Global Campus are launching a campuswide Workforce Development Initiative March 1.

This initiative will be completed in two phases and will allow the U of A to evaluate the workforce development offerings available across campus, including professional development opportunities, employee training and upskilling/reskilling programs. The initiative will also identify opportunities for growth in workforce development programming.

The first phase of this initiative will focus on collecting information on the workforce development programs offered at the U of A. The Office of the Provost and Global Campus will engage with university leadership through open forums, in-person meetings and surveys to gather this information.

"Over the next month, we will start working with our deans, associate deans, department chairs and heads, and other university leaders to assess all non-credit workforce development activities on our campus," said Provost Terry Martin. "Gathering feedback from every unit on campus is a crucial component of this initiative. This information will help us advance our land-grant mission and expand workforce development in our community, state and region."

The second phase of the Workforce Development Initiative will provide an analysis of workforce development needs from business and industry, create an external advisory committee to provide guidance on the university's workforce development programs, perform benchmarking of the university's workforce development programs against other R1 research institutions and deliver recommendations on how the U of A can maximize its workforce development impact.

"Workforce development, in general, has grown significantly in the past decade and has an immeasurable impact on our economy," said Cheryl Murphy, vice provost for distance education. "By providing people with the skills they need to advance their careers, workforce development can support an entire industry and affect entry-level employees as well as top-level executives."

For more information regarding this study, please contact Tara Dryer, the Global Campus senior managing director of professional and workforce development, at tdryer@uark.edu.

About the University of Arkansas: As Arkansas' flagship institution, the U of A provides an internationally competitive education in more than 200 academic programs. Founded in 1871, the U of A contributes more than $2.2 billion to Arkansas' economy through the teaching of new knowledge and skills, entrepreneurship and job development, discovery through research and creative activity while also providing training for professional disciplines. The Carnegie Foundation classifies the U of A among the few U.S. colleges and universities with the highest level of research activity. U.S. News & World Report ranks the U of A among the top public universities in the nation. See how the U of A works to build a better world at Arkansas Research and Economic Development News.