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OPA News Release: [09/28/2004]
Contact Name: Ed Frank
Phone Number: (202) 693-4676

U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao Announces Nearly $4.9 Million in Grants to Train Workers for Careers in Geospatial Industry

Grants Announced at Orlando Geospatial Conference are Part of President's High Growth Job Training Initiative

ORLANDO, Fla.—Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao today announced nearly $4.9 million in grants to train workers for careers in the geospatial industry. The Secretary of Labor's video announcement was made to over 1,500 geospatial, defense and homeland security experts at the Spatial Tech 2004 Conference in Orlando.

“The geospatial industry is fast-growing and exciting and it offers a great deal of job opportunities. The workforce in this industry has doubled in the last four years and accelerated growth is expected in the years ahead,” said Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao. “That's why training is so important. And, that's why the Administration is devoting $4.9 million to invest in training and education models that can be replicated across the country to prepare our workers for the exciting and good paying career opportunities jobs in this industry offer.”

Grants awarded to the Spatial Technologies Industries Association, Nortel Network Kidz Online, the William F. Goodling Advanced Skills Center and the Rancho Santiago Community College District will be used to improve outreach and recruitment of workers and increase the training options available to workers entering or continuing geospatial careers. Recipients of the awards are tasked with developing a training module that can be used by educational institutions and industry organizations around the country to prepare workers for careers in the geospatial industry.

U.S. Assistant Secretary of Labor for Employment and Training Emily Stover DeRocco addressed the audience on the worker challenges created by emerging technologies. For the past two years, under the President's High Growth Job Training Initiative, DeRocco's agency has been identifying expanding industries and meeting with executives, human resource leaders and educators to find ways to create a pipeline of workers with the technical, and often advanced, skills for the jobs employers need to fill.

“Geospatial industry leaders who have met with us expressed the need for increased education and training at the high school, community college and university level to develop a pipeline of workers armed with the skills and competencies the industry demands,” said DeRocco. “By addressing these workforce challenges and investing in America's workers now, we can prepare for future challenges as this sector continues to grow.”

The Geospatial Industry is an information technology that manages, interprets and displays geographic, temporal, and spatial data. Occupations in the geospatial technology sector include engineers, mapping technicians, surveyors, architects, cartographers and more.

For more information about the President's High Growth Job Training Initiative, please visit http://www.doleta.gov/BRG/JobTrainInitiative/

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