State of the Workforce
Herkimer, Madison and Oneida Counties

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Information Technology

Key Factors

Looking at projections for Oneida County and its neighbors in the Mohawk Valley region served by the WIB, the region will be needing a large number of new IT employees by 2010.

Policy Actions

Through a consortium of colleges led by the SUNY Institute of Technology, the WIB is implementing the National Information Technology Apprenticeship System (NITAS). NITAS braids classroom training and on-the-job learning to develop competencies that have been established by major IT vendors and companies. Through this process, the region can develop a pool of IT workers with both foundational knowledge and the “skill of the day” as well as help employers create career tracks for employees. Because IT training is costly, the WIB will continue to seek state and federal funding to support worker training.

The WIB’s efforts to develop this innovative project led to its selection as a demand-driven incubator site by the National Association of Workforce Boards, working in partnership with the U.S. Department of Labor.
The WIB and Oneida County Workforce Development are working to replicate the successful summer 2004 Experience Information Technology program, which matched high school students with local IT employers for summer internships.

In 2005, the WIB and Oneida County Workforce Development will be implementing the IT Link project to help workers upgrade skills. IT Link was funded through the efforts of Rep. Sherwood Boehlert, Chair of the House Science Committee.

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