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Arkansas leaders stepped up four years ago to close the gap between IT tech
demand and trained talent. This led to the formation of the Arkansas Center for Data
Sciences (ACDS).
ACDS supports all traditional pathways to an IT career through
Higher Education, but because of employer demand for IT and cyber skills, they
introduced the Registered Apprenticeship Program combined with Pre-
apprenticeship Training and Work Based Learning Internships.
These services create a supplemental staffing strategy that creates pathways to
employment for the entire IT profession. The organization’s U.S. Department of
Labor (U.S. DOL) Registered Apprenticeship Programs deliver new professionals
equipped with the skillset companies need. ACDS hosts and participates in
workforce related accelerators, seminars, conferences, training, webinars, and
networking events to educate and inspire a new generation of workers and
encourage employers to use RAP as a strategy to advance existing IT professionals
in their career.
Combined, these efforts have significantly built Arkansas’ IT talent supply. Around
Five thousand apprentices are training across the United States, 505 of which are Arkansas IT apprentices sponsored by ACDS. “That’s 10% of the total IT apprentices in the country,”
says Lonnie Emard, Apprenticeship Director at ACDS.
IT Gap Generates New Beginnings
This month, we sat down with Emard, who gave us an overview of ACDS’ work and
the program's future direction, and Grants Manager Logan Hunt, who heads the
Center’s grant funding and reporting efforts.
ACDS first worked toward eliminating every barrier to entry for employers, allowing
them to focus on their crucial talent efforts, hiring the right fit, developing them to be
productive, and ensuring they stay. The ACDS team handles all paperwork and
project management. Emard says ACDS even provides access to diverse candidates
for companies and funds the cost of Related Technical Instruction.
"ACDS handles recruitment, implementation, RTI support & funding, USDOL compliance, grant management, and more to eliminate every barrier to entry for new employers."
- Lonnie Emard, Director of Apprenticeship
These methods have worked. ACDS now oversees Apprenticeship Programs for
over 100 employers and 505 apprentices.
How it Works
Both small businesses and massive corporations participate in the program, which helps employers find apprentices that fit their needs. Potential candidates with diverse backgrounds can get meaningful work experiences before entering an Apprenticeship Program, thanks to the Center’s work-based learning opportunities.
ACDS provides online, self-paced Pre-apprenticeship training courses for people to
begin to develop their IT skills. Its partnership with UAGC, the University of Arkansas,
and Jobs for the Future allowed the organization to provide training across many in-demand IT occupations. Those individuals can develop job-ready skills in data analytics, digital marketing, IT support, software development, project management, or UX Design.
“Even if they don’t have a four-year degree in computer science, there is still a level
of educational and experiential background that need to be considered,” Emard
explains. “We provide this education throughout the program.”
The online learning opportunities can prepare individuals for the ACDS Work-based
Learning Internship Program. From there, individuals can enter the program’s 12-
week, 40-hour-a-week internships.
“ApprentiScope ensures we have an accurate & centralized record of truth across all of our programs, making us confident we can achieve scale and make a real impact for the people of Arkansas.”
- Lonnie Emard, Director of Apprenticeship
The focus is giving a candidate who doesn’t have any applied experience on their
resume a chance to experience meaningful work. This prepares them for an
Apprenticeship. ACDS has high success rates with people going from an internship
to an Apprenticeship, if not with the same company, but with another employee partner of
ours. In fact, 80% of interns are hired as apprentices after their internship.
ACDS has a Talent Acquisition Team that reviews candidates through screenings
and assessments before matching potential IT candidates with open
Apprenticeships are a minimum of one year and lead to certification upon
completing the program. ACDS tailors Apprenticeship Programs to the IT
occupations employers need most, and companies can customize the curriculum to
cover their specific processes and IT tools. There are different training partners for
other required skills, and the curriculum can be customized to meet the
employer’s specific needs.
The Need for Data Management
Federal, State, and Private funding sources require accurate and complete data.
Grant funding and registering programs with the U.S. DOL come with various rules
and regulations, all of which Hunt says demand precise record-keeping. Originally,
ACDS housed program data in a custom-built SQL database. Eventually, the
organization outgrew this data-keeping method.
Hunt explains, “When you are doing hundreds of Apprenticeships a year, a SQL
database no longer works unless you're willing to hire a dedicated team of 4 full-time people to manage it.”
Now, ACDS uses ApprentiScope’s Apprenticeship Management Software to manage
its Registered Apprenticeships, Pre-Apprenticeships, and Federal Workforce Grants.
According to Hunt, their decision to switch is already paying off, as he estimates the software saves him 10 hours a week on cleaning up data alone. “Instead of spending my time validating data and deleting duplicates, I can focus on writing grants. ApprentiScope frees up a lot of time,” he says.
“We have been able to scale up and streamline our processes thanks to ApprentiScope. Instead of spending my time validating data and deleting duplicates, I’m able to focus on writing grants. ApprentiScope frees up a lot of time.”
- Logan Hunt, Grants Manager
