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2014 State of St. Louis STEM Workforce Report

By on September 10, 2014
2014 State of St. Louis STEM Workforce Report

As Associate Vice Chancellor for Workforce Solutions for St. Louis Community College, I recognize that St. Louis Community College is in a unique position to help our region meet some of our most persistent economic challenges.

This morning St. Louis Community College unveiled the findings of our sixth annual “State of St. Louis Workforce Report.” Since the inaugural report in 2009, it has provided valuable insight into the issues faced by St. Louis employers searching for qualified applicants. This year’s report focuses on STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics). It tells an important story about how important STEM jobs are to our regional economy and the challenges employers face in recruiting STEM workers. It provides evidence of a continuing economic recovery but one that may be challenged by a shortage of workers with knowledge and skills. It reveals that soft skills were still the major shortcoming of job applicants and that a lack of qualified graduates in various disciplines was the most cited reason for skill shortages.

The report may be downloaded at www.stlcc.edu/STLworkforce.

Today we began an important discussion about how businesses in our region are finding ways to fill their open positions and overcome the skills gap. To those who attended our event at our Forest Park Campus, thank you for being part of the conversation!

I would greatly appreciate your help in continuing this conversation in the community, specifically in your circles of influence. If you see fit, please share the report with your personal and professional networks, or take part in the ongoing discussion about workforce training online at our blog and news site http://workforcesolutions.stlcc.edu/.

About Steve Long

Steve Long is the Associate Vice Chancellor for Workforce Solutions for St. Louis Community College. Steve leads a successful corporate services unit providing contract training to St. Louis area employers since 1984, a community services unit providing grant based workforce and employment services including services to the local Workforce Investment Board, and many collaborative workforce development projects with a variety of community based organizations. He has previously served as the Director of Workforce and Community Development, the Director of Career and Technical Education and the Associate Director for the Center for Business, Industry and Labor of St. Louis Community College. Before coming to the College, Steve served as the Director of Industrial Education for the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education where he led the development of Missouri’s first customized training program. He has also served in the Governor’s office as a budget and policy analyst for workforce development and directed employment and training centers under the Comprehensive Employment and Training Act (CETA). Steve brings over 35 years of experience in job training and workforce development to his profession. He has been a Board member and officer of many professional organizations including President of the National Council for Workforce Education (NCWE), one of the workforce councils under the American Association for Community Colleges (AACC).

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