Lack of skilled workers: underfunded community colleges to be blamed

As the country aims to train workers for hundreds and thousands of new infrastructure jobs that are being created, it leans heavily on community colleges. However, these workhouses of workforce development are going through some infrastructure issues of their own. The decline in enrollment due to the pandemic, especially in hands-on skilled trades courses has made things worse for the long-overburdened and underfunded schools. Diane Whitmore Schanzenbach, economist and director of the Institute for Policy Research at Northwestern University says, "This is the engine for growth in skilled workers doing these types of jobs. That engine, well, it's sputtering." Despite these struggles and obstacles, many schools are taking new steps to train workers for tomorrow. 

Riley Acton, professor at Miami University of Ohio says, "Especially during times of recession, we see community college enrollments increase." This is true for both high school graduates as well as displaced workers. However, this didn't happen during the pandemic. She adds, "The pandemic has been totally different in this regard. We actually saw community college enrollment decrease significantly." Research shows that from the fall of 2019 through the fall of 2021, public school enrolment fell by 14.8%. This is the biggest enrollment decline ever seen. 

Source: CNN