DUE Recruitment Strategies To Meet The Needs Of New IT Jobs Dr. Ann Beheler, Principal Investigator Ann Blackman, Program Manager Convergence Technology Center Innovations 2008

Three partner community colleges working together in the North Texas area Convergence Technology Center

Convergence Technology Center Focus  Build curriculum for Convergence Technician Training faculty case study/problem-based learning approach convergence technology content  Recruiting faculty and students from underserved areas  Sharing materials with others utilizing CCCCD’s partnership with National Center for Telecommunications Technology Regional Program

Types of Prospective Students Undeclared major Entry level technician Re-careering individual Post Baccalaureate Recent High School Graduate

Individuals growing up in the 21 st century will have 7 or more careers Recruiting MUST be a multi-faceted, focused approach. One Recruitment Event, Over and Over, Right? NO!

Focused Recruitment Provide “just in time” information Keep it relevant to what their interest and needs are Show them the money Remember - If they’re not a geek, then they know a geek

Focused Recruitment Recruitment includes not just prospective students, but also  Parents, friends, family  Teachers, advisors  Employers

THE CHALLENGE Provide training for jobs that don’t exist yet.

FOCUS On The BIG Picture – Raises Awareness Public Relations  Human Interest Stories Online newsletters, “Lifestyle” magazines  Service Clubs/ Chamber of Commerce Don’t forget the churches!  K-12 school events Math & Science Nights Classroom Visits

Make it Hands On Middle School Field Trip to the Convergence Lab

FOCUS On Making A Connection Prospective College Students  Middle School and High School group campus field trips Undeclared College Majors  Focus on developmental math classes and introductory computer classes Faculty and Staff  Lunch’n’Learns

Faculty/ Staff Lunch’n’Learn SUBJECTS HAVE INCLUDED: W hat is a Smart Home, anyway? Network Security: Why it’s important to you Convergence Technology Lab tour Voice Over IP

FOCUS On Information, Please! Communication  Upcoming courses  Promote events  Faculty development Marketing  

FOCUS On Information, Please! SHORT, INFORMAL sessions Pizza Nights Java Jolts New Student Orientations

FOCUS On Information, Please! WORKSHOP sessions TechKnowFire High School Faculty CEU’s “Influencing The Influencers” Career Week Tech Day

Partner with other College Resources Recruiting Student Life Tech Prep Leadership Development Programs  CCCCD ACE program resulted in recruitment of undeclared majors through the Developmental Math Program – we found student who didn’t know they could succeed in a career.

FOCUS On Retaining The Students Declare Your Degree Day Focus Groups  Plan TechKnowFire  Suggest “Bringing IT Together” Network Dinners  Participate in recruitment events Take every opportunity to highlight and acknowledge student accomplishments

Access To Recruitment Materials Login (upper right hand corner) 3. Register 4. Choose “Products” at bottom of page 5. Request access After receiving access, you can login and immediately go to products page.

Your Best Recruitment Tools are Your Students

Results to date IT/Telecommunications registrations up almost 65% over 2004 (200+ more students) Underserved percentages more than doubled except for Hispanics Companies that traditionally recruited only 4- year graduates are recruiting from us now (Nortel, Perot, for example)

Collin Convergence Enrollments are up Fall 04 Spr 05 Fall 05 Spr 06 Fall 06 Spr 07 Total Convergence Women African- American Hispanic

Percentage Increase over Fall 04 Fall 04 Spr 05 Fall 05 Spr 06 Fall 06 Spr 07 Total Convergence 05%41%46%55%63% Women011%63%89%100%117% African- American 041%52%48%93%133% Hispanic08%68%76%-24%68%

Questions and Contacts Dr. Ann Beheler  Principal Investigator  Ann Blackman  Program manager  This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation