In March, Minnesota State Colleges and Universities (MnSCU), the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce and the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development announced a joint “Workforce Assessment” initiative to address the state’s growing skills gap. The Workforce Assessment begins in April and engages Minnesota companies in developing precise projections of how many workers and professionals, with what kinds of skills, will be needed in which regions of the state, for what kinds of jobs.

MnSCU Chancellor Steven Rosenstone recently said, “To compete in the global knowledge economy, our people, Minnesota’s workforce, needs higher levels of education than ever before. We need a more robust pipeline of increasingly skilled workers, innovative and creative thinkers who solve problems, are on the leading edge of knowledge creation, and can bring those solutions to market. Minnesota’s workforce must also meet the needs of global production, assembly, delivery and distribution systems. If we don’t provide the workforce that firms need to be globally competitive, our businesses and factories will move to where they can find those workers.”

Riverland Community College, with three campuses in the MnSCU system, recently invested in its commitment to workforce education. After a comprehensive nationwide search, Dr. Scott Williams was appointed as dean of academic affairs with an emphasis on workforce education.

As part of the academic team, Williams’ primary responsibilities will be to provide academic leadership, management, evaluation and administration for the achievement of successful teaching and learning through Riverland faculty and support staff. In collaboration with faculty and staff, Williams will plan and develop new program initiatives as well as redesign existing course curriculum to meet the evolving workforce and industry needs Riverland graduates face upon the completion of their degrees, diplomas or certificates.  He will participate actively in the Workforce Assessment recently launched by Rosenstone.

In addition, Williams will be the administrator of the Albert Lea Campus while he continues to work closely with administrators, faculty and staff at all three Riverland campuses.

Williams comes to Riverland from Indian Capital Technology Center, located in Muskogee, Oklahoma, where he served as Director of Workforce Development since 2005.  As director, he managed academic and customized training programs on four campuses.  He has also served as an adjunct business instructor for Bacone College for the past five years.  He completed his B.B.A. and MBA from Northeastern State University in Oklahoma and his Ph.D. in Occupational Studies from Oklahoma State University, recently named a national top 10 graduate program by U.S. News and World Report.  Williams and his wife, Carol, have two children, Makayla, 10 and Matthew, 1.

Williams has already begun working in our communities and meeting with business and industry leaders to help us address significant challenges facing Minnesota’s workforce needs. As one state leader said, “Changes in workforce needs are coming like a freight train, and we are very quickly going to go from high unemployment to asking ‘Where are the workers?’” Riverland’s goal for Williams is to have the answers and prepare Riverland’s programs to lead the way.