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Community & Connection in Manufacturing
“When people think of manufacturing, they usually think of global firms mass producing products when in reality, most manufacturing businesses are family-owned small enterprises with fewer than 50 employees. Many don’t have well-developed processes for workforce development and are dependent on others preparing a trained workforce. And the workforce is always sighted as the number one issue by these businesses.”
- Peter M. Cammarata, President, Buffalo Urban Development Corp.
In 2018, Northland Workforce Training Center (NWTC) opened its doors in Buffalo, New York, offering students new opportunities to access State University of New York (SUNY) certificates and degrees in advanced manufacturing and related programs.
NWTC was seven years in the making. In 2011, Governor Andrew Cuomo established ten regional councils to develop long-term strategic plans for economic growth in every region in the state. Councils were charged with developing strategic plans at the local level that would direct economic development investments. The council studying the Buffalo region identified three strategies for direct economic development investments: placemaking, innovation, and workforce development. This meant projects and programs had to leverage existing assets in a given location, foster a culture of entrepreneurship to support small businesses to create jobs, and prepare a workforce for the next generation of jobs that were being created in the region.
The plan also identified eight industry sectors that offered high growth and future economic opportunity —- advanced manufacturing was one of those sectors. Advanced manufacturing stood out because of a projected 20,000 job openings in the region over the next ten years due to an aging workforce and pending retirements. In addition, average salaries for production workers within the advanced manufacturing sector could support families and offer pathways to the middle class. The industry was also starting to experience new innovations due to Industry 4.0 advancements.
Led by Howard Zemsky, with assistance from the University at Buffalo Research Institute, the Western New York Regional Economic Development Council released its strategic plan which included a recommendation to create a training center focused on preparing Western New Yorkers for high-paying careers in advanced manufacturing and energy. The vision for a 21st century training center in Western New York was born. Mayor Byron Brown and other elected officials including New York State Assembly Majority Leader Crystal Peoples-Stokes and New York State Senator Tim Kennedy advocated for this new facility to be located within Buffalo’s East Side.
The East Side of Buffalo is 91 percent Black and has a median household income $8,000 lower than the rest of Western New York. This area was chosen as the home of NWTC because it is part of Buffalo’s manufacturing history and is suffering from job loss, high poverty rates, and a lack of public and private financial resources.
With the capital project financed, the state needed an organization to operate the new facility. That’s when four local nonprofits stepped up and accepted the challenge. The Buffalo Niagara Manufacturing Alliance, Buffalo Urban League, Catholic Charities, and Goodwill Industries came together to revive a dormant nonprofit called the Economic Development Group (EDG). The group soon hired Stephen Tucker as President and CEO, and he established the mission, vision, and culture of NWTC. EDG is now the operator of NWTC.
Today, NWTC offers four technical programs with 255 students enrolled from the neighborhood and surrounding communities. NWTC is seen by neighbors, who were at first skeptical that an investment would actually be made, as an opportunity for new possibilities. In its few years of operation, community members have invested more time and energy in their neighborhood: the streets have gotten cleaner, new restaurants and businesses have opened, and several community groups utilize the space at NWTC to host meetings.
“Access means a few different things. For the students it means we are in their community and neighborhood, and they can get here. It means accessible because of financial aid and our support services. For industry it means access to a new talent pool that exists but hasn’t been kindled.”
-Adiam Tsegai, Adjunct Faculty, University at Buffalo
As Governor Cuomo’s signature workforce initiative under the Buffalo Billion, NWTC is an industry-driven, public-private partnership between employers, educational institutions, community and faith-based organizations, and state and local government, focused on closing the skills gap of the local labor pool and creating economic on-ramps to training, co-ops, internships, apprenticeships, and permanent employment for Western New Yorkers seeking high-paying advanced manufacturing and energy careers. NWTC offers a state-of-the-art training center and provides for-credit, certificate, and degree programs as core offerings through its educational partners, Alfred State College and SUNY Erie Community College. It incorporates evidence-based placement strategies, such as co-ops, apprenticeships, and internships, with an emphasis on permanent employment with family-sustaining wages and benefits.
The vision of NWTC is to be the premiere model of a public-private partnership providing education, training, and workforce development services that are industry-driven and employment-focused. NWTC’s mission is to advance the economic well-being of Western New York by developing and maintaining a skilled and diverse workforce to meet the needs of the advanced manufacturing and energy sectors, while providing job seekers with pathways to gainful employment, career advancement, and economic sustainability. NWTC is uniquely designed for individuals 18 years or older to reduce all the major barriers that prohibit students from enrolling and completing post-secondary education, such as transportation, childcare, academic readiness, and affordability.
NWTC’s training approach combines evidence-based best practices regarding awareness, recruitment, assessment, career planning, education and training, job placement, and retention services, with intensive wraparound support to ensure student suitability, preparedness, persistence, placement, and career advancement. NWTC offers certificate and degree programs at little to no out-of-pocket expense to students based on need. NWTC is committed to the success of every individual who makes up its diverse student body. It provides students with tools and resources to address challenges, so they can achieve their advanced manufacturing or energy training and career goals. Its students-first culture meets individuals where they are and focuses on delivering a tailored educational experience that drives success.
NWTC’s target enrollment populations include the unemployed or underemployed; displaced employees, especially those in COVID-affected sectors (retail, hospitality, food service); those who are economically disadvantaged (as defined by at or below 185 percent of the Federal Poverty Guideline); and historically underrepresented populations including women, people of color, the justice-involved, veterans, refugees, and first-generation college students. NWTC provides all students with a support team consisting of an admissions and financial aid coordinator, a success coach, and a placement specialist. The team works in tandem with students to raise awareness regarding technical careers and associated programs as well as assistance with college applications, financial aid, barrier mitigation, soft skills training, academics, and job placement. Success coaches also work with students and prospective students to access supportive services and provide followup services for up to three years post graduation.
NWTC is an extension campus for SUNY Alfred State College and SUNY Erie Community College offering the four programs:
As part of the NWTC enrollment process, all students are guided by an Admissions Coordinator in applying for federal aid (Pell), state aid (TAP and the Excelsior scholarship), external scholarships, and for those eligible, the Say Yes and Educational Opportunity Program.
Even with the assistance of NWTC staff in completing required applications and paperwork, 27 percent of students attending NWTC are in need of at least partial, if not full, assistance with tuition. To address this issue, NWTC provides tuition assistance to eligible low-income students in the form of the Northland Grant. In addition to tuition, the cost of books, required laptops, software, tools and consumables, all present an additional financial burden for low-income students. NWTC supports students in the form of the Northland Grant, NWTC Tool Chest, Laptop Loan Programs, and Lending Library.
NWTC’s Northland Grant is a resource available to NWTC students on a case-by-case basis to assist exclusively with tuition and fees. The income limit is an adjusted gross income of $80,000 for students with dependents and $40,000 for students without dependents. NWTC’s Tool Chest, Laptop Loan Program, and Lending Library are also resources available to students that have exhausted all available financial aid funding and do not have the financial means to purchase the required books, laptop, or tools. Students can now borrow books, tools, and a laptop to support their education and training at NWTC.
In addition to the wraparound and student success services previously mentioned, NWTC also supports students with cash assistance in the case of an emergency via the Student Emergency Support Fund. NWTC’s Student Emergency Support Fund is available to NWTC students on a case-by-case basis to mitigate unexpected expenses that may affect program completion. The Student Emergency Support Fund provides students with a one-time grant and students are not required to reimburse the organization for this support.
Upon successful completion, NWTC assists graduates with obtaining employment that offers family-sustaining wages and benefits. NWTC graduates also receive success coaching support for up to three years after being hired full-time to ensure they are on track for advancement and upward mobility. In addition, all graduates are also offered career advancement classes designed to educate and assist individuals who are currently employed with career planning and advancement.
“We wanted to create a student-first culture where students feel welcome, where they feel valued, and where we can hold them accountable. We provide them with resources to make them successful, but also teach them how to become advocates for what they need. We've been able to retain a high number of students just because of our culture. And now this is starting to permeate through the professors and the colleges as well. We're all in this thing together. That's why we call ourselves a team.”
-Stephen Tucker, President & CEO, NWTC
During its third year, NWTC continues to progress through the continuous improvement philosophy of assess, interpret, develop, implement, and change. NWTC continues to develop and implement data-driven, innovative strategies and processes that, although based on best practices, are responsive to the very specific needs of its unique student populations. This student-focused approach and philosophy of continuous improvement is the key to the successful launch of NWTC. Continuous and incremental improvement based upon empirical quantitative and qualitative assessment, combined with the knowledge gained from its students’ lived experiences, have not only increased NWTC’s internal efficiency and efficacy, but has directly and positively impacted the recruitment, retention, completion, and placement of their students.
NWTC has evolved from a theoretical model to a vibrant and diverse organization embodying inclusivity and access to equitable resources and opportunity, regardless of race, gender, or socioeconomic status. NWTC provides students with a real opportunity to overcome personal and societal obstacles by facilitating training for in-demand professions in advanced manufacturing that provide family-sustaining wages with benefits and pathways out of generational poverty.
In its three years of existence, NWTC has enrolled more than 500 students, and the results from student surveys demonstrate that its unique model is holistically supporting students academically, financially, and personally. Currently, NWTC’s student body has 52 percent minority representation and 8 percent female/non-binary representation. Over half (52.5 percent) of the student population lives within the city of Buffalo and a third of the students (32.2 percent) reside in Buffalo’s East Side.
NWTC currently has an 81 percent semester to semester retention rate, and 81 percent of NWTC graduates have been placed in employment. These placements have a combined economic impact of more than $2.5 million in wages added back into the local economy. In addition to wages and benefits, NWTC graduates now have a career pathway that leads to the middle class and economic stability.
While evaluating NWTC’s programmatic outcomes during FY 2019/2020, it was impossible to conduct such an analysis without considering the dramatic ramifications of the pandemic on the Spring 2020 semester. Following the stay-at-home order issued by Governor Cuomo in March 2020, SUNY institutions were required to transition all educational activities, both lecture and labs, to a remote format. This had a major impact on students attending classes at NWTC, who primarily selected their program because of its hands-on pedagogy. As such, the total effects of the coronavirus pandemic are still forthcoming. Still, NWTC’s program completion rate of 60 percent is more than double the national average. Moving forward, NWTC plans to build on these results with an even larger student body next year, achieving even more placements of students into full-time jobs.
NWTC was created by critical partners and stakeholders including business and industry, government, economic development, post-secondary education, the workforce investment system, and other community stakeholders. Replicating NWTC’s model in different parts of the state and country has always been the long-term goal for scaling.
This case study was originally published by Urban Manufacturing Alliance in collaboration with The Century Foundation in 2021 as part of “Manufacturing Workforce Strategies Building An Inclusive Future: How community-embedded workforce organizations center racial equity, credentialing, and training to create stronger neighborhoods,” a report highlighting best practices from eight workforce organizations in connecting diverse communities to opportunities in manufacturing.