Educating and Training an EV Workforce

CANFIELD, Ohio — When Jessica Borza became executive director of the Mahoning Valley Manufacturers Coalition 10 years ago a lot of foundational work had to be done, she says. Much of that work was focused on getting on the same page with educational and training partners in regard to curriculum and industry recognized credentials.

“More recently, it’s been a focus on how do we get out into the community to reach individuals who are not otherwise considering manufacturing,” Borza says. “We feel confident in the training programs we have in the Valley. Now we just need to make sure that they are full and that they are getting connected with our manufacturers.”

According to Borza, MVMC is now in discussions and working to create a career pathway for the emerging electrical vehicle industry in the Mahoning Valley, using a portion of its General Motors Community Reinvestment funding.

“We’re doing some independent research now,” she says. “We’re working with Ultium to kind of map out the skills and competencies they need and then just really looking at our landscape of partners to see what gaps we need to fill to serve that new and emerging market.”

Copyright 2024 The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.