Accelerate Your Career in Dayton, OH
Innovative training programs pave the way to better career opportunities in Dayton and the surrounding communities.
Nontraditional education routes, such as vocational training, apprenticeships, online learning and certificate programs, have become an increasingly important tool in the Dayton region’s workforce development toolbox.
These programs often emphasize hands-on experience and develop practical skills that can be immediately applied in the workplace, offering students alternative pathways to career development and economic mobility, helping close skills gaps in growing industries and fostering a more diverse and inclusive workforce.
For example, Central State University in Wilberforce offers an online cybersecurity certificate program that allows students to receive the training they need to start their career in less than a year.
Fast Track to Career Opportunities in Dayton
The program, offered by the College of Engineering, Science, Technology and Agriculture in the Department of Mathematics and Computer Science, is a gateway to developing the essential skills needed to be a strategic data defender capable of protecting an organization from highly disruptive cyberattacks, says Debbie Alberico, interim director of public relations and institutional advancement for Central State.
The program is open to any student who has completed a course of college math. It offers stackable credentials for students who want to pursue higher-level degrees and certifications, and each program is tailored to meet the specific needs of the industry.
“This program may be a great solution for someone who is looking to break into the industry but may not have time to complete a bachelor’s degree program.”
Debbie Alberico, Central State
“This program may be a great solution for someone who is looking to break into the industry but may not have time to complete a bachelor’s degree program,” Alberico says. “Students learn about open-source security tools and cybersecurity analyst tools, including data protection. They learn key compliance and threat intelligence and develop skills that are industry specific, such as incident response.”
Alberico says the certificate program is just one way the university is able to quickly meet the region’s growing workforce needs.
“As a vibrant contributor to the Greene and Montgomery counties in Ohio, Central State University plays a crucial role in generating income, developing human capital and stabilizing the region’s economy,” she says.
“Our Career Services (team) organizes on-campus career fairs regularly and encourages internship opportunities for students. Central State University students have completed internships at organizations, including Procter & Gamble, the Cleveland Cavaliers, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Cornell University, American Red Cross, Cleveland Municipal Court and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, to name a few.”
Building a Healthy Workforce
Premier Health and Sinclair Community College in Dayton recently partnered to create education and career advancement opportunities for Premier Health employees through the Premier Health Sinclair Academy.
The goal of the academy is to recruit new employees and upskill existing Premier Health employees to create a national model for training critically needed health care personnel.
The program gives employees the skills, education and certifications they need to advance their careers in areas such as respiratory care, imaging, pharmacy technology and nursing, and it helps widen the pipeline of talent for an in-demand health care industry.
“While we have always had strong relationships with our health care partners, the COVID-19 global pandemic presented new workforce challenges,” says Kathleen Cleary, senior vice president of workforce solutions at Sinclair Community College. “Sinclair has also created an academy with the Kettering Health network and plans to replicate this model with additional employers.”
In January 2024, Sinclair will begin offering its fourth bachelor’s degree – a bachelor of science in nursing – to help fill one of the largest single workforce sector vacancies in the region and allow students to get a critically needed education at a much lower cost.
In addition to the partnership with Premier Health, Sinclair hosts an apprenticeship program with some 80 students gaining on-the-job training in areas such as advanced manufacturing, health care, hospitality and HVAC.
The Sinclair Workforce Development Division also works with local industry leaders to provide consulting, training, certifications, custom business solutions and resources to the demands of the job market.
“When employers are building and strengthening their workforce talent, Sinclair Community College has the resources and excellent customer service to meet their needs. Whether it’s professional development for their current employees or building and growing their workforce, Sinclair should be the first call employers make,” Cleary says.
Partnering Together to Help Students Succeed
The Dayton region’s public schools, colleges, universities and industries recognize the importance of collaboration when it comes to workforce development. They consider themselves partners in preparing students for successful careers, working together to offer students opportunities to gain real-world and hands-on experience through career and technical education and innovative programming, such as Sinclair Community College’s FlexFactor.
FlexFactor is a national program that introduces K-12 students to STEM careers through a series of team-based challenges. Students are given a real-world problem to solve and then pitch their solutions to a panel of judges from the business and education communities. Students develop critical thinking, team building, communication and problem-solving skills and also learn about pathways to in-demand careers in areas such as advanced manufacturing.
“This program forces them to work with other people who maybe they wouldn’t normally be working with. They have to conceptualize a flexible hybrid electronic-based product to either prevent, mitigate or solve a problem. Then they build a business model and pitch that to a “Shark Tank”-style panel of judges,” says Julie Huckaba, FlexFactor project manager. “Also, along the way, they’re required to visit Sinclair Community College and go on an industry tour. So we are exposing them physically to new industry partners, and, in the research that they have to do to finish the project, most of them find out that there are careers that they didn’t know anything about.”
To date, Huckaba has worked with more than 1,000 students through engineering classes at the Greene County Career Center, Dayton Regional STEM School and Goshen, Miamisburg, Clark-Shawnee and Xenia high schools. She also works with Sinclair’s pre-apprenticeship program to place high school students in internships with local tech companies and organizations.
The Greene County Career Center in Xenia offers high school students some 21 career and technical programs of study, including cybersecurity, culinary arts, health sciences, advanced engineering, IT and aviation maintenance. The center works with industry advisers to keep abreast of local workforce needs.
“A major goal of ours is to help local employers meet their needs in the workforce. The programs that we support were chosen based on a market analysis of workforce needs in the Dayton region/Miami Valley,” says Marissa Couch, public information coordinator for the Greene County Career Center.
The center also boasts an award-winning, student-led restaurant, The Greene Room. Students who complete the culinary arts program can earn certifications from the National Restaurant Association and are eligible to earn scholarships to Clark State and Sinclair community colleges.
“Each one of our programs is built to prepare students for their careers. Culinary specifically gives students the opportunity to earn their ServSafe certification, which makes them competitive in the field and more prepared to walk into a professional kitchen and land a job,” Couch says. “Working in this environment also encourages students to build upon their soft skills. This includes confidence, looking customers in the eye and ensuring that they’re going to provide the best possible service when working with the public.”
Get to Know Dayton
Want to learn more about living and working in Dayton, OH? Check out the latest edition of Livability Dayton, Ohio.
