Symposium Sessions
NASA, SWFT Programs Set to Launch New Workforce Initiatives
Written by: Lesley Conn
Two national experts in space workforce development are seeking industry input as they prepare to launch initiatives designed to increase interest in and opportunities for space employment.
Elaine Ho, associate administrator for NASA’s Office of STEM Engagement, and Mel Stricklan, executive director of Space Foundation’s Space Workforce for Tomorrow (SWFT), on Wednesday convened a roundtable with a few dozen executives and education leaders at the 41st Space Symposium.
“Everywhere we look we’re seeing the talent deficit across all of aerospace,” Ho said. “If the demand signal on the space economy is going to go up, logically we’re going to need more workers. And what we’re seeing is that the talent pool is declining, not increasing.”
Through NASA Aerospace Skilled Technical Workforce Hubs, the agency has designated $12 million in grants that will provide eight government entities, schools, universities or education nonprofits up to $1.5 million over three years to address critical workforce shortages in aerospace. NASA expects to announce the awards in June, Ho said.
Inspiring the Next Generation
Space Foundation is putting more focus on workforce development and plans to include the topic in all its events, including Symposium and Faga Forum, Stricklan said.
“We’re going to start talking about workforce in every event that we do because it’s the heart in everything we do,” she said.
SWFT also is in the validation phase of an initiative designed to connect college-aged interns with industries that have internship programs and entry-level positions available. SpaceConnect is designed as a best-in-class platform to ensure that any student who wants to work in the industry can find the workplace connections they need.
Even during the validation phase, Stricklan said, the program helped place two students.
Stricklan and Ho will be panelists at a Thursday Symposium session on building a national workforce system, and Stricklan also will be one of the speakers at a SWFT luncheon Thursday that examines the challenges of building a space workforce in an environment of constant disruption.
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