For Immediate Release: Monday, December 7, 2020
Contact: Josh Poupore
jpoupore@corningplace.com
518-330-2250
WDI Announces New Partnership to Connect Job-Seekers in New York State with Over 15,000 Credential, Education and Training Opportunities
Workforce Development Institute’s Future Skills Exchange Platform and national nonprofit Credential Engine partner to connect New Yorkers to quality training and credentials
ALBANY – The Workforce Development Institute (WDI) announced today a new partnership between WDI’s Future Skills Exchange (FSX) and the national nonprofit Credential Engine that will give New Yorkers easy access to a growing body of national and industry-recognized certifi- cates as well as New York State (NYS) specific training and credentials for in-demand jobs. Education and training providers will have the option to add credential information into either FSX or Credential Engine’s Registry, simultaneously populating both platforms, and making the information widely available in NYS and nationally. Future Skills Exchange creates an easy-to-use interface for New York learners to find and compare those credential offerings by factors such as location, cost, skills and occupation.
The pandemic-induced economic downturn and resulting high unemployment has disproportionately impacted lower-skilled New Yorkers, requiring new tools and collaboration to address the jobs crisis. This new partnership builds on the collaboration established earlier this year between Credential Engine and the New York Association of Training and Employment Professionals (NYATEP). Connecting these initiatives will streamline the way information about education and training is collected and shared, further expanding opportunities for New Yorkers to explore and access high quality training, credentials, and jobs in high demand.
“This partnership with Credential Engine has been in the works for nearly two years and we are so pleased to now launch this collaboration.” said Lois Johnson, Director of Workforce Strat- egies at WDI. “Integrating our technologies will provide access to the variety of high quality education, skills training, apprenticeships and credentials available in NYS, and now nationally. WDI sees this as a tremendous asset for our business, education and union network in New York State as well as our state workforce.”
Credential Engine’s leading work in creating a linked open data network through use of the Credential Transparency Description Language (CTDL)—the standard language used to create a common understanding of credentials and their value—is creating a more transparent and connected credential marketplace. “Collaborations like these help break down data silos by making sure our initiatives are complementary to one another—effectively addressing the needs of learners, workers, employers, and educators,” says Scott Cheney, CEO of Credential Engine. “If New Yorkers—and really the nation as a whole—are to come out on top of this unprecedented workforce crisis, then they need comprehensive and actionable information to find their way back to work. Integrating FSX with the Credential Registry allows New Yorkers to make clearer, real-time connections to opportunities that are available for them.”
“In a typical year, NYATEP members help support more than a million New Yorkers into good or better jobs. Post-COVID, an unprecedented number of New Yorkers will be updating their resumes, seeking out new opportunities and transitioning to better employment, and to do so we will need high quality information, technology and tools at our fingertips," remarked Melinda Mack, NYATEP Executive Director. "We have partnered with Credential Engine to improve credential transparency within New York and WDI's Future Skills Exchange technology platform to make navigating the workforce training that much easier.
Beginning in 2018, WDI began designing a clearinghouse specifically for learners and employers to navigate skills and credential-based offerings. Future Skills Exchange (FSX), the first of its kind in New York, is now an interactive, web-based platform that easily connects New Yorkers seeking courses, apprenticeships, credentials and assessments, directly with the education and training providers that deliver them. FSX was developed by (WDI) in partnership with Innovate+Educate, a national non-profit, focused on skills for the future of working and learning. By using CTDL, the FSX is able to link to the wealth of information found in the Credential Registry to broaden the impact of credential information available to learners, workers, employers, and state leaders.
More about the Future Skills Exchange (FSX) https://futureskillsx.org/
FSX is an interactive, web-based platform that connects New Yorkers seeking courses, apprenticeships, credentials and assessments directly to the education and training providers who deliver them.
FSX has the ability to function much like a Yelp for learners, allowing the learner to sort through all of the options available and connect directly to the provider of that training to get additional information or enroll. Ordinarily, trying to find that information used to require searching across all higher education websites. By contrast, FSX allows learners to search by location, cost, remote versus classroom and other filters, opening up a range of opportunities as well as the ability to compare and make the best choice for a learner’s skill pathway.
ABOUT THE WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT INSTITUTE (WDI)
WDI is a statewide non-profit that works to grow and keep good jobs in NYS. Using a range of tools, including “boots on the ground” information, workforce expertise, and funding to facilitate projects, WDI is focused on building workforce skills and strengthening employers’ ability to hire, promote, and retain workers. Our work often fills gaps not covered by other organizations and is accomplished through partnerships and collaborations with businesses, unions, other non-profits, educational institutions, and government. Learn more at wdiny.org.
ABOUT CREDENTIAL ENGINE
Credential Engine is a non-profit whose mission is to create credential transparency, reveal the credential marketplace, increase credential literacy, and empower everyone to make more informed decisions about credentials and their value. Learn more at https://credentialengine.org.
The official press release can be accessed here or below.
