To build Ohio’s manufacturing talent pipeline, the Ohio Manufacturing Workforce Partnership (OMWP) led a statewide initiative to upskill 5,000 Ohioans with innovative earn-and-learn (apprenticeship) strategies. OMWP was a collaboration between Ohio TechNet (OTN), a consortium of Ohio’s community colleges and other post-secondary education institutions, and The Ohio Manufacturers’ Association (OMA), which facilitates the statewide network of manufacturer-led regional sector partnerships.
The success of this project has led to a continued partnership and transformed into the Ohio Manufacturing Talent Partnership.
OMWP’s earn-and-learn programs were supported by the U.S. Department of Labor (USDOL), through its Scaling Apprenticeship Through Sector-Based Strategies initiative, which provided a $12 million grant.
OMWP provided a framework to support locally driven efforts through Ohio’s industry sector partnerships to develop and scale innovative models that responded to the needs of employers as well as career seekers.
Ohio TechNet fosters innovation and collaboration among Ohio’s public institutions of higher education in order to highlight and accelerate educational innovation. Ohio TechNet supported the Ohio Manufacturing Workforce Project through the regular engagement of local workforce professionals and educational leaders throughout the state to share lessons, best practices and tools created to support the expansion of innovative earn and learn programs, reaching new audiences, all with a goal to help close the manufacturing workforce gap.