Overview

In partnership with the National Association of State Workforce Agencies (NASWA) and the National Labor Exchange (NLx) Research Hub, the Coleridge Initiative will be delivering a training program focused on job demand data use and how to align it to skills and credentials in state administrative data. The course will be offered in October 2024 and January 2025. By the end of the course, participants will have the tools and experience necessary to create data products and actionable insights that:

1. Enhance existing LMI efforts such as occupational forecasts through supplements to traditional sources of labor market data. 
2. Better communicate the changing needs of labor markets across the nation.
3. More effectively examine how skills and credential attainment align to job demand by industry, geography—such as subregion, metro classification, and state—and worker characteristics.
   

The Coleridge Initiative, NASWA, NLx Research Hub, and Multi-State Data Collaborative teams will host a webinar about this training opportunity and the application process on August 26, 2024 at 1 PM EST. The recording and slide deck from the webinar session will be uploaded to this webpage once they are available.

Participants in the training program will have the opportunity to work with the NLx Research Hub jobs data and a synthetic dataset based on linked state postsecondary and workforce administrative data inside the Coleridge Initiative’s Administrative Data Research Facility (ADRF). The first class will begin on October 1, 2024, and the second class will begin on January 8, 2025. The program is designed with the understanding that it is difficult for state agency staff to make time for professional development, and participants are expected to devote no more than 2 to 4 hours a week to the endeavor.

Application Information

Teams from states new to ADA training, the ADRF, or NLx data, as well as those with experience are both encouraged to apply.

State teams should consist of 2-3 participants, with at least one member from a state agency who is part of the workforce system, and others from state education and economic development agencies or local workforce boards. At least one participant should have strong programming skills. Priority will be given to teams that satisfy these requirements.

As part of the application, the team lead will need to provide the following for each applicant:

• A recent resume or CV.
• A statement describing how their participation will increase the amount of actionable labor market information in the U.S. to support the recruitment, hiring, and training opportunities of all workers to good jobs.
• A statement from their supervisor describing how participation will support their agency in the near and long-term future.

The team lead will also be asked to indicate a preference for the class they would like the team to attend, and can respond with “no preference.”

Schedule

Class sessions will occur at most once a week, with breaks for federal holidays.

Class 1 Schedule: October 1, 2024 - April 8, 2025

1:00 PM EST, Tuesdays

• Kickoff: 10/1/24 (1 hour)
• Module 1 (Foundations): 10/8, 10/15, 10/22, 10/29 (1 hour each)
• Module 2: 11/5, 11/12, 11/19, 12/3, 12/10, 12/17, 1/7, 1/14, 1/21, 1/28, 2/4, 2/18 (2 hours each)
• Self-Paced Project Work w/ Team: 2/19 - 4/7/2025
• Final Presentations: 4/8/25 (approximately 3.5 hours)

Class 2 Schedule: January 8, 2025 - June 25, 2025

1:00 PM EST, Wednesdays

• Kickoff: 1/8/25 (1 hour)
• Module 1 (Foundations): 1/15, 1/22, 1/29, 2/5 (1 hour each)
• Module 2: 2/19, 2/26, 3/5, 3/12, 3/19, 4/2, 4/9, 4/16, 4/23, 4/30, 5/7, 5/14 (2 hours each)
• Self-Paced Project Work w/ Team: 5/15 - 6/24/2025
• Final Presentations: 6/25/25 (approximately 3.5 hours)