MONTGOMERY – A newly released survey reveals that Alabamians see their local community college as the leader in workforce development initiatives and accessibility. The findings come as ACCS institutions continue to increase enrollment and ramp up adult education, academic and workforce education training, serving more than 5,300 businesses statewide.
“The results of this survey highlight the central role our community colleges play in preparing Alabama’s workforce, along with the confidence communities have in the Alabama Community College System to help them succeed,” said Jimmy H. Baker, Chancellor of the Alabama Community College System.
“The system’s commitment to building a skilled workforce strengthens not just individual lives, but also the overall economic well-being of the state. As Alabama continues to evolve, the ACCS is poised to remain a crucial partner in its success.”
The survey, delivered in February by national survey research and strategic services company McLaughlin & Associates, polled Alabama residents who have voted at least once since 2020.
Key survey highlights include the following:
- Two-thirds of residents have a favorable view of their local community or technical college.
- 95% of residents agree programs like the ACCS’ high school career roadmap positively impact the state’s labor force by offering early exposure to career opportunities.
- 94% support increasing funding to the ACCS for dual enrollment scholarships. Currently, the ACCS awards nearly 40,000 scholarships to high school students.
- 89% see community colleges as an important part of Alabama’s higher education system.
- There is strong support (85%) for creating a central hub to streamline job training and placement under the ACCS
- A majority (65%) of residents believe Alabama faces challenges due to a lack of skilled workers.
The ACCS’s impact reaches across Alabama through customized workforce training programs, apprenticeships, academic transfer, dual enrollment, adult education and more.
Amy Price, Chief Nursing and Chief Operating Officer of Coosa Valley Medical Center, said a nursing apprenticeship collaboration the medical center has with Central Alabama Community College is an example of how integral community colleges are to workforce development in the state.
“You can imagine, being a freestanding, rural hospital, partnerships are very important to not only our existence but to our sustainability, and so when we look over our partnerships, I can’t think of one that’s more important to us today than the good work community colleges are doing in their programs,” she said.
“It’s really paying off in terms of putting people to work with credentials to meet the demands of healthcare today.”
Among the reasons thousands of companies choose the ACCS for workforce training is the community college system’s model of bringing business and industry “to the table” when developing workforce programs. Shannon Jackson, Director of Corporate Services at Southeast Gas, said the ACCS Innovation Center’s customized Skills for Success programs are both critical and timely to the work that energy companies are doing across the state.
“Having every member of our construction crew CDL-certified is invaluable. What would have been three to four weeks, and at a cost, Skills for Success and LBW Community College gave us the opportunity to train students faster and at no cost,” she said.
More information about the ACCS’ programs and colleges is available at www.alabama.edu
