William Gary Sr., executive vice president of Cuyahoga Community College's workforce and economic development division, focus is not only Tri-C, but the region.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- William Gary Sr.'s role as executive vice president of Cuyahoga Community College's workforce and economic development division extends far beyond Tri-C's walls to much of Northeast Ohio.
Representing the college in regional economic development initiatives is among his duties. Key to many economic development issues is whether the local workforce is adequately trained to fill the jobs created by such projects. Responding to the training and workforce needs of business and industry is a focus of the division Gary heads.
Gary was named to his Tri-C position in August after serving 14 years in a similar position at Northern Virginia Community College. He has spent most of his roughly four-decade career in the private sector.
"I have had a pretty varied background in different industry sectors," he said. "In marketing. In business development, workforce development, labor relations, compensation and benefits, human resources, operations, manufacturing - you name it. It has been a blessing for me in positioning myself for the opportunity here at Tri-C."
Gary wasn't looking for a job when a recruitment search firm contacted him about the position. He didn't even have an updated resume. Gary wasn't sure he was open to relocating from the Washington, D.C.,-metro area, where he had lived since 1978. But he said Tri-C President Alex Johnson invited him to visit the college before discounting the job opportunity.
"I didn't know him, but I knew of his reputation," Gary said. "I knew of the reputation of Tri-C, which I consider to be in the top five of community colleges in the nation. I felt that I at least owed it to myself to explore applying for the position."
Gary said he is glad he reconsidered.
"Quite frankly, things happen for a reason," he said. "God works in mysterious ways. I got an offer I couldn't refuse. I felt that I could come here and add value to the fine work that has already been done."
Q: What is the role of the community college in retraining, especially during periods of high unemployment and underemployment?
A. No other institution of higher learning provides that kind of training and education designed to retool and retrain individuals for the workforce. So, our role is very critical. We have to gauge not only the needs of employers, but we also need to understand the skills gap and skill sets of our region; so that we can bridge those gaps by providing focused training and education to individuals in the community. These individuals, quite frankly, are looking for an employment opportunity with a sustainable, livable wage.
Q: What are the trends in local workforce retraining?
A: Here in the Cleveland region, health care is constantly an in-demand industry, including nursing and patient assistance care. I think information technology is going to be a critical need on the part of professional, financial and business-related industries. There is a wealth of opportunity for people in those areas, including those in computer science and professional services. The manufacturing sector continues to be on the up-rise with advance manufacturing, which requires higher-level education, math skills, computer skills, communication skills, and project management skills. There are opportunities in public safety. We have one of the largest public safety academies in Northeast Ohio. We have a new police academy and fire academy in Parma that is going to continue to drive employment opportunities for those who seek that field.
Truck driving, welding -- you name it -- we have it here. I see the Cleveland region is becoming more of a knowledge-based economy, but still is maintaining its roots in manufacturing.
Q: What are the issues you would like to address in your new position?
A: Internally, my observations are that we have a fine institution that needs to improve its marketing of our progress and our role in workforce and economic development. We don't tell that story loudly enough, so we are working to address that. We are also working to address all of our services to the community and to the business community, so that we present a one-door approach.
Externally, I see a region that is ripe for change and progress in making sure that Cleveland's growth and resurgence are sustained. By that I mean there are a lot of different groups and a lot of different initiatives that are designed to address workforce and economic development issues, but they are not integrated. I see my role as providing assistance in integrating those initiatives so that we are not duplicating and replicating expenses and efforts. I see the community college as a broker in accomplishing that.
Q: What do you mean by "duplicating and replicating expense and efforts"?
A: For example, we have different strategies and different agendas by different organizations. You have the Workforce Investment Board addressing workforce issues. You have philanthropic organizations addressing workforce issues. You have Team NEO addressing workforce issues. You have Global Cleveland addressing workforce issues. The Urban League is addressing different workforce issues. These disparate groups need to all be around the same table planning a unified Cleveland strategy. And then from there, it can be determined what role each of the respective organizations will play in meeting that global strategic plan. That's where I think I can add value.
We need to combine resources. We all serve different constituencies. I am not looking to destroy that piece of our mission. What I am looking to do is to identify areas of synergy and collaboration where Cleveland is not divided in terms of its accomplishments; and that we do that concertedly, in cooperation, and through partnership. I think through that model, we could further accelerate what we are really all after: That is job creation, inclusion for all of our citizens -- not just some, but all of our citizens, addressing the issues of literacy, adult high school dropouts, unemployment among African-American and Hispanic groups and creating pipelines for entry into the community college, so that we can begin to train folks for some of these jobs that are open.
I have been spending a lot of my four months here meeting external stakeholders, including church leaders, business leaders and political leaders and getting an understanding of their role in this issue. I am learning how Tri-C can be a partner to those organizations.
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