NCSES Skilled Technical Workforce: 2020 Workshops

NCSES Skilled Technical Workforce: 2020 Workshops

The National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics (NCSES) is proud to convene an interactive, three-part summer workshop on the skilled technical workforce (STW). These workshops culminate the NCSES STW working group's year-long effort on the NCSES STW Initiative. This initiative serves a framework to understand and measure the STW—workers that use significant levels of science and engineering expertise and technical knowledge in their occupations and whose educational attainment is less than a bachelor's degree.

We seek input from the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) workforce community—those who help educate, train, employ, support, sustain, and advance STEM workers. We hope that these engaging workshops will generate helpful insight and input on NCSES's STW efforts as well as allow the audience from a variety of backgrounds to learn from each other.

Although these workshops will address a distinct STW topic, taken as whole, these workshops build upon each other to inform the data and research needs of the STEM workforce community through NCSES's efforts to measure and understand the STW.

Registration for each workshop along with details are provided below.

If you require special accommodations or have any questions about the workshops, please contact Gigi Jones (gijones@associates.nsf.gov).

Workshop #1: The Skilled Technical Workforce and Why it Matters

In this session, workshop participants will hear from the Vice Chair of the National Science Board (NSB), Dr. Vic McCrary, who led the Board's 2-year STW task force. NSB's report on the STW identified the opportunities and challenges facing students, incumbent workers, businesses, educators, and others involved in the STW. Complementing and extending NSB's work, NCSES has delved into measuring and understanding the STW. NCSES staff will present a framework for defining and measuring the STW using currently available data. As valuable stakeholders in the STW community, participants will have the opportunity to provide valuable insight and feedback regarding the NCSES STW framework based on their own work and experiences.

Presenters:
  • Victor McCrary, Vice Chair of the National Science Board and Vice President for Research and Graduate Programs at the University of District Columbia
  • Amy Burke, NCSES Science Resources Analyst

Preliminary Agenda and Presenter Bios
August 7, 2020 01:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)

Post Workshop Materials: Poster for video recording of Workshop 1

Workshop #2: Administrative and Other Supplemental Data Sources for the STW

Federal statistical agencies are exploring the use of administrative data and other supplemental data as an alternative or supplement to survey data. In this workshop, we will discuss some of the challenges and opportunities associated with using alternative data sources to better measure the STW.

  • Emilda Rivers, NCSES Director
  • Matthew Williams, NCSES Mathematical Statistician
  • Vladimir Bassis, Iowa Department of Education

Preliminary Agenda and Presenter Bios
August 21, 2020 01:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)

Post Workshop Materials: Poster for video recording of Workshop 2

Workshop #3: Surveying the STW to Answer Policy-Relevant STEM-Workforce Questions: The 2021 National Training, Education, and Workforce Survey (NTEWS)

Building upon the first two workshops, this final STW workshop presents the impact and value of survey data on the STEM workforce community's policy research work. Researchers, analysts, and data users from a variety of sectors have used STEM data; however, they have limited data on STW education, training, and employment. NCSES plans to field in 2021 a new general population sample survey called the National Training, Education, and Workforce Survey (NTEWS), which will focus on skilled technical workers and work-related credentials (i.e., licenses, certifications, and certificates). Learn about and provide feedback on the forthcoming NTEWS.

Presenters:
  • Nicole Smith, Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce (CEW) Research Professor and Chief Economist
  • Gigi Jones, project officer of the National Training, Education, and Workforce Survey (NTEWS) and Skilled Technical Workforce Initiative

Preliminary Agenda and Presenter Bios
August 28, 2020 01:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)

Post Workshop Materials: Poster for video recording of Workshop 3

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Last Updated: December 15, 2020