By Olivia Miller
Amid a serious labor shortage, global pandemic, population decline, high unemployment numbers and low labor force participation rates, there are many challenges looming over the hills of West Virginia to prepare and retain a qualified workforce.
In the current economy, 75% of jobs require post-secondary education or training. According to West Virginia’s Climb Initiative, it is estimated that only 31% of West Virginians hold an associate degree or higher, while 60% of the state’s residents will need such a credential to meet future workforce demands. Considering these issues, the West Virginia State Legislature has taken steps in recent years to support and strengthen West Virginia’s workforce through funding opportunities geared toward building a skilled workforce.
As such, the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission (HEPC) is working to equip 60% of the Mountain State’s workforce with a formal credential beyond high school by 2030—doubling the percentage of working-age West Virginians with a post-secondary education over the next decade.
Many collaborative efforts are underway throughout the state to invest in potential workers and improve economic development. The HEPC’S Division of Health Sciences strives to bring experts together to collaborate and support innovation to improve the health of the people in West Virginia through supportive health sciences education.
“We really see ourselves as supporting the workforce for the future of health care in West Virginia, and we do that in a variety of ways,” says Cynthia Persily, senior director of health sciences. “We support a number of programs that help to recruit or retain professionals in West Virginia.”
The HEPC Division of Health Sciences oversees and administers the Rural Health Initiative, a statewide program directed at improving the recruitment and retention of health care providers to rural areas of the state. The initiative awards three large, two-year grants every year to Marshall University, West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine (WVSOM) and West Virginia University (WVU). Program funding from the initiative is also used to award smaller grants to other higher education programs, health care facilities and nonprofits. Approximately $1.4 million has been awarded to each participating school over a two-year period.
Thanks to this funding, Marshall University’s Robert C. Byrd Center for Rural Health awards residency sign-on incentive programs, a rural health fellowship program, scholar programs and rural research grants. WVU’s Institute for Community and Rural Health has awarded more than $2 million to dental and medical students who have committed to practicing in rural and underserved areas since 2012. WVSOM’s Green Coat Program offers undergraduates the opportunity to gain exposure to clinical responsibilities in a hospital environment.
A top priority of HEPC’s Division of Health Sciences focuses on the nursing workforce shortage. According to the West Virginia Center for Nursing, 39% of all registered nurses in West Virginia are over the age of 51. With nearly half of all nurses nearing retirement age, the division is looking to rapidly increase the number of educated nurses.
A top retention tool for nursing is the West Virginia Nursing Scholarship Program—intended for licensed practical nurses, registered nurses and master’s or doctoral nursing education students. In exchange for receiving the scholarship, participants agree to complete a service obligation in the state.
Opportunities also exist outside of the health care field to train potential workers at all stages of life. Currently, the state’s financial aid programs total more than $100 million per year to support continued education. The Higher Education Adult Part-Time Student (HEAPS) Grant Program and subsequent HEAPS Workforce Grant Program have been implemented to encourage and enable West Virginia students with financial needs to continue their education on a part-time basis at the post-secondary level.
The West Virginia Higher Education Grant is another opportunity for West Virginia residents with financial need to pursue post-secondary education at an affordable rate. The maximum annual award for 2021 and 2022 is $3,000 and can be applied to eight semesters. Since the grant was established in the 1968 to 1969 academic year, approximately 450,000 awards have been given at the tune of $43 million.
The West Virginia Invests Grant Program has made obtaining a high-quality certificate or associate degree more accessible and affordable by covering the remaining costs for tuition and eligible fees at West Virginia community and technical colleges. The last-dollar-in program requires students to use all of their federal or state grant awards first, and West Virginia Invests puts in the last dollar.
The umbrella of West Virginia’s financial aid programs encompasses well-known programs like the Promise Scholarship, which offers tuition costs and mandatory fees for graduating high school seniors who achieve certain academic requirements; the West Virginia STEM Scholarship, created to enable academically talented students to pursue careers in engineering, science and technology in the state; and the Underwood-Smith Teaching Scholars program, designed for recent high school graduates with a passion for teaching. Recipients of this program receive $10,000 per year for up to four years.
West Virginia’s Community and Technical College System (WVCTCS) has been leading workforce development, economic development and educational partnerships in the Mountain State for nearly a decade through the increasingly popular Learn and Earn program—which provides students with a part-time job while they study for an associate degree at a West Virginia community and technical college.
Among the many fields that are lacking workers, information technology occupations are in increasingly high demand throughout the state. WVCTCS’s Apprenticeships in Motion program connects employers with students through colleges, allowing students to take technical courses while gaining paid work experiences. The program creates a pipeline of skilled workers within a company, allowing companies to grow on their own and giving workers the opportunity to advance to higher positions.
“I think we still have a long way to go in our health professions, education and retaining students in our state,” says Persily. “We have to look at how we do that in a very strategic way. We must learn from other professions that have done a good job with that. There are ways that we can use out of the box thinking and tap into outdoor activities and the family atmosphere of West Virginia to keep people in the Mountain State.”
