APSi Magazine February 2014 | Page 11

APSi Magazine / Feb, 2014 11

APSi is pleased to see the current President continue his efforts to increase awareness of how important workforce development is to economic growth. During the recent State of the Union address, President Obama tasked VP Joe Biden to lead a national training program reform to help get our citizens trained and retrained to meet the needs of todays high demand jobs.

In 2009 APSi was able to see how successful these vocational training programs can be when you focus on markets with high demands. Unfortunately, not many of the mainstream corporations were able to capitalize due to economic fears. However, the few that were able to see the vision and utilize certified professionals that came from the program were able to fill job openings with individuals who were able to immediately make an impact toward their bottom line. Our Broadband Fiber Optic Program was one of the best performing programs in the country, placing over 40% of the graduates during the height of the recession.

Now the country is in a growing stage, we are estimating a huge increase in vocational programs that are linked to apprenticeships and long-term sustainable jobs. Companies like APSi will continue to focus on filling the gap between companies, training institutes and quality professionals eager to get back to work.

"I am so excited to see that trainers like APSi can continue our efforts of helping America get back on track through workforce services. The State of the Union address was just the motivation we needed to keep focusing on our workforce development mission. Our students and corporate partners will definitely benefit from having more government support and available funding for professionals seeking technical and career based training linked to immediate employment", said APSi CEO Scott Coulter after the State of the Union address.

APSi and its partners are preparing to meet with state and local officials to review new wired and wireless vocational programs specifically designed for telecommunications professionals. The goal is to improve on the previous successful program that helped broadband professionals find new employment in 2009.

Vocational Training for

new technology initiative