Sarpy Goes Beyond: Generation Next
A bright future belongs to those who are prepared, adaptable, and equipped with the right skills, but that doesn’t just happen. It takes work. That dedication to workforce development has a home in Sarpy and the surrounding area. Businesses and organizations here are setting a new standard for preparing the next generation. From cutting-edge partnerships between industry and education to mentorship that focuses on individual growth, these efforts are shaping a future where the next generation is not only ready for the workforce but poised to lead it.
Successful development doesn’t come from just one answer, and it doesn’t come at just one time. It’s a series of touchpoints along the span of a career path. “I believe that economic development should be looked at with a holistic approach,” said Laura Harrison, Business & Community Relations Manager at Grow Sarpy. “Workforce, housing, education, business attraction and retention are interconnected and to see a successful community we need to make sure we have a strong workforce.” It’s apt that an organization named Grow Sarpy has initiatives that start during primary and secondary education. Grow Sarpy is a cooperative venture formed between public and private sectors of the county and they leverage connections with the area’s top decision-makers and industry leaders to power economic development. The mandate is there in their name; to grow Sarpy. When it comes to workforce, the seed they’re planting comes in the form of Construction Kits.
Construction Kits are made up of basic tools used by trade professionals: safety glasses, work gloves, hearing protection, a tape measure, carpenter pencil, torpedo levels and more. These items are branded with the logos of local companies who donated them, assembled into drawstring bags, and then presented to local students in career trade related coursework at the beginning of the school year. Nearly 1200 kits will be assembled this year. The goal of providing these kits is to increase students’ interest in the skilled trades and introduce them to career opportunities in the area. It’s a program that exemplifies the relationship between business and community that Harrison works to develop. “The kits allow for our Grow Sarpy investors to market themselves by not only helping provide the tools but present them to students along with information on their industry and business,” Harrison explained. In its 4th year, the Construction Kit initiative is getting even more buy-in from investors. “For the first time they have the opportunity to help assemble the kits. Prior, we did that in-house, but we wanted to make it a networking event with volunteer opportunities.” The first-time kit assembly event was also informative with presenters speaking on workforce solutions.
Harrison places a premium on these opportunities to connect with Grow Sarpy investors. Staying in communication with these stakeholders allows the organization to respond to business community needs. “I value being able to reach out to businesses to get their insight on the business climate in our area,” she said, explaining that workforce is often brought up as a pain point. “Because of those meetings we’re able to get ideas like the Construction Kits.” The program is just one part of Grow Sarpy’s mission but Harrison is excited for its growth potential. In addition to donated tools, the program has also attracted financial support. “There’s a lot of discussion on different ways we can use the donated funds to promote the career trades. We’ll be putting together a Workforce Committee that will look at what can be done in a 2nd semester and possibly scholarships for seniors going into the trades.” Harrison is also eager to see how they can take the program and expand it as a model for another field or industry like healthcare.
Partnering with industry is also key to setting up the next generation for success for Patrick Boyle, Director of Community Engagement at Metropolitan Community College. “What’s most important on our end in higher education is to listen to industry and develop curriculum around those needs,” he explained. “That way higher education can teach students what’s happening in the real world and graduates will be much more prepared. Industry partners are happy they have qualified employees that are ready to go, and students can be comfortable knowing their education is very relevant to the career they’re seeking.”
Boyle started with MCC in 2011 working in project management and then marketing. His focus now has broadened to economic development and attraction and retention of businesses. He fosters relationships the school has with the community, including hundreds of industry partners who are represented in 31 different industry advisory committees on everything from accounting to welding. Their input helps MCC form relevant curriculum and keeping those relationships strong means MCC can work at the speed of industry. The school’s evolution over 50 years has allowed them to be not only consequential in the lives of their students, but the community. The completion of the Construction Education Center in 2017 brought together all construction-related programs under one roof. Programs like Architectural Design, Civil Engineering, Construction Technology, Plumbing, and HVAC had been spread out in separate campuses before, but now students of these disciplines can work together, (like they would in the professional world), on the capstone project of a residential home. The new center now has the space for that built home to be moved from the campus and out into world where a partnership with the Holy Name Housing Foundation allows it to become someone’s actual home. “This is the hands-on experience students need and it’s a point of pride that they’re building something someone is going to live in.”
This proven history of education innovation has the area excited about the plans for a 148-acre site located southeast of the intersection of Nebraska Highway 370 and Highway 50. MCC is hopeful to break ground in the end of 2024. Currently, plans feature a main education building along with other commercial, housing, office, education, and retail buildings. However, plans could be subject to change as the college continues to examine and analyze industry needs. “We’re creating a campus for jobs of the future and given the speed of technology we’ll never be able to exactly pinpoint what that will be,” he said, emphasizing how important adaptability is to the planning process. “We need a facility that can respond to the dynamic needs of the future workforce. Jobs were much more static in the past. We don’t want to build a multi-million-dollar campus that will be obsolete in a few years.” As the plans take shape, the location is certain to be a draw. “We’re planning on having people come in from Lancaster, Saunders, Otoe, Mills, and as far south as Missouri and Kansas to take relevant trainings.”
An education destination designed to serve the needs in the fast-growing county carries a lot of potential for workforce development. Though the draw of this specific campus would be new, MCC’s dedication to growing the area’s workforce is the backbone of the college. “In terms of retaining talent, 100% of the community college goal is to keep students in our area,” he said. Students turn into homeowners, consumers, and replenish the tax base that moves or retires, he explained. “We want our students to stay here, and we help them find the careers that can help them do that with our industry partners.”
The next generation isn’t just being developed here at the macro level. Significant professional development can also happen at a small-scale, personal level. While the engineers of E & A Consulting Group, Inc. are building up communities, E&A as a company, is building up its team members. Terry Rush, the Director of Marketing and Business Development at E&A knows this to be true because it’s all in a day’s work. He came to the business six years ago and found a well-established culture of personal and professional development. Rush was asked to develop additional training to facilitate growth with the engineering and technical staff that would assist with client relationships. “The joke goes ‘How do you know an engineer is an extrovert?’” Rush said, setting up the punchline of an oft-repeated bit of humor in the industry. “They look at your shoes and not theirs.” While they’ve been trained and educated for the logistical part of their work, education on the social aspect can be overlooked, but not at E & A. “Our team has to speak to clients so they can understand their goals and aspirations,” he explained. “They need to be able to communicate.” The training he created was called Development 101 and it covered the how-to of having a conversation, intentional listening, picking up on cues that can help team members help clients. “I try to mix a good amount of hard science and data about these kinds of interactions and marry it with the learning of those soft social skills.” The feedback on the training has been extremely positive with trainees leaving the sessions feeling a much greater comfort level with client interactions. He has done training sessions for dozens of people at a time or even just one-on-one. Rush is proud to be a part of the high level of investment E & A puts into its team that includes personal and professional development. In addition to internal training, the company will regularly bring in presenters and coaches with outside perspectives. They’ve also established a system where team members and supervisors will regularly check-in outside of the typical performance review schedule. “It’s a time to openly talk about how things are going and ask if they’re getting what they need to be successful,” he said.
This level of development isn’t just reserved for employees. E & A has also invested greatly in a robust intern program. Part of its success is designing a program where it’s not just interns gaining experience. Their professionals meet the talent of the future. And gives the team the chance to coach those who will help shape tomorrow’s industry workforce, whether they’re at
E & A or somewhere else. The program runs over the summer with an average of 10 to 15 participants. Since 2016 they have had 13 of their interns transition into full time employees. “That’s a lot of hires in this day and age, especially for a company our size,” he said. Rush attributes the high retention rate to the amount of varied and hands-on experiences in the program. “You’ll be in the trenches of each area [Transportation, Water Resources, Survey, etc.] and this makes for well-rounded individuals who are knowledgeable enough to what they want their focus to be. They grow into the roles that meet their passion.”
As Rush sees it, guiding individuals towards their passions has made them strong in employee development. Facilitating that growth is integral to the everyday work they do of building the communities where they live work and play. “This is where we raise families, it’s where we call home,” he said of the pride the E & A team takes in their work. “It’s fun to see the Tower District go up,” he cited as just such a point of local pride. “We have people who live in the shadow of the water tower there in Papillion and now they’re a part of the way the land is changing.”
As the landscape of workforce development changes, Sarpy County and the surrounding area will be ready for what’s to come.
This is one of the articles from the current Sarpy Chamber Magazine & Member Guide. Stop by the Sarpy Chamber office to pick up your copy today!
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