How Will Alaska Deliver on Broadband for Alaskans?

Alaska’s Workforce Development Plan is guided by a set of best practices and principles identified by the U.S. Department of Commerce for highly effective workforce investments (source): 

• Employer led to ensure skilled workers are connected to quality job opportunities.
• Guided by multiple community partners such as educational institutions, labor unions, community-based organizations, and economic development organizations.
• Include wrap-around services to support the most vulnerable populations.
• Increase educational and workplace diversity, equity, and inclusion.
• Prioritize proven earn and learn models like Registered Apprenticeships.
• Lead to stackable, industry-recognized credentials and ensure that information about credentials is publicly accessible through the use of linked open data formats that support full transparency and interoperability. 
• Measure and evaluate outcomes such as workers’ employment and earnings. Ensure that data is transparent, actionable, and linked back to those executing programs.
• Build sustainable systems and partnerships that endure to serve employers and workers beyond the federal investment.
• Connect workforce development to economic development.
• Are coordinated across the federal government.
• Encourage the use of other government and private funding.

Where Will the Broadband Construction Work be Targeted?

According to the Alaska Department of Commerce, Community, and Development, of 388 identified Alaskan communities only 112 (28.9%) have Broadband Service. (A community is considered served if 80% of the households can achieve 100Mbps download and 20Mbps upload.) Of the remaining 196 Alaskan communities, 80 (20.6%) are in the process of having broadband service installed. But 184 (47.4%) are unserved and 12 (3.1%) are underserved. Most of these communities are in remote areas where broadband service is an essential component of achieving digital equity. 

Below is a table presenting the ABO broadband plan from their website in a community-based searchable format. Take some time to review what ABO is already planning for the next five years (Updated 07-05-23). This provides some hint to where workforce resources will be needed.

Alaska Broadband Equity, Access, & Deployment (BEAD) Workforce Plan DRAFT Goals and Strategies Summary

Vision: Alaskans from every region of the state will have opportunities to learn about, train for, and fill broadband construction and deployment jobs to meet the labor supply needs of industry employers. 

Mission: Alaska’s BEAD Workforce Plan will support development of a diverse and inclusive skilled labor force to meet the needs of employers who build, operate, and maintain telecommunication infrastructure in every region of Alaska.

GOALS

1. Increase the number of Alaskans qualified to fill broadband construction and operations occupations by recruiting and training 1,000 Alaskans to fill industry jobs.

2. Employ members of the NTIA/BEAD targeted populations* in at least 50% of new broadband/telecommunication jobs to ensure a diverse and inclusive workforce. 

3. Develop post-deployment capacity for local residents to learn about and navigate training and career opportunities, including self-employment, and other opportunities available using high-speed broadband access by supporting Digital Navigators in 75% of communities that receive BEAD-funded expanded broadband access. 

Strategy 1. Build on existing construction industry training and workforce efforts.

ACTION STEPS

1. Determine regional labor supply and projected industry labor gaps to meet broadband occupation demand. 

2. Work with existing training programs such as union and non-union apprenticeships, pre-apprenticeship programs, workforce intermediaries, and secondary and postsecondary programs to incorporate broadband construction-related skills into current training. 

3. Determine the transferable skills workers need for other industry jobs, including oil & gas, mining, maritime, and construction. 

4. Develop strategies to overcome identified workforce development challenges, including geography, qualified trainers; equipment and facilities; curriculum; funding; other challenges.

Strategy 2. Create a career and technical education (CTE) talent pipeline for telecommunications occupations and employment.

ACTION STEPS

1. Create a working group of industry employers, educators, trainers, and unions to develop strategies and tools needed to build and sustain a statewide telecommunications talent pipeline. 

2. Develop a public awareness campaign (branding, messaging and outreach, website) for priority broadband construction and deployment occupations, including the training, skills, and certifications required for employment. 

3. Identify effective models of career awareness and information and adapt these to broadband, to reach students, counselors/advisors, career guides, parents, and job seekers. 

4. Expand the Alaska Career Information System (AKCIS) and AlaskaJobs to inform students and job seekers about telecommunications occupations careers and employment opportunities. 

5. Deploy Digital Navigators to help individuals navigate online education, training, support services, employment opportunities including entrepreneurship, and other personal opportunities available with high-speed Internet access. 

Strategy 3. Increase education and training programs that prepare students and adults for apprenticeship and entry-level employment in telecommunications occupations.

ACTION STEPS

1. Develop and implement Career and Technical Education Programs of Study (CTEPS) and career pathways for middle and high school to postsecondary training, apprenticeships, and employment for broadband operations. 

2. Expand existing construction pathways to include broadband construction. 

3. Develop or locate vendor-neutral industry standard course curriculum for basic telecommunications skills courses and offer a train-the-trainer program to provide qualified instructors. 

4. Use pilot and demonstration processes to introduce a variety of courses in a variety of settings to test the ability of regional and subregional workforce partners to deliver remote, rural, and urban located industry training. 

5. Create a data collection and outcome analysis system that measures the effectiveness of the new CTEPS and industry basic skills courses for increasing occupational skills and knowledge, high school completion, advancement to post-secondary programs, and employment. 

Strategy 4. Put in place recruitment, training, and employment efforts focused on targeted populations*.

ACTION STEPS

1. Develop strategies with regional partners to overcome challenges and barriers for recruiting, training, and employment for targeted populations. 

2. Support organizations/agencies who already work with the targeted populations, including Alaska Native Organizations; Alaska Division of Vocational Rehabilitation; Alaska Department of Corrections; RuralCAP; others. 

3. Organize and support a coordinated effort with Alaska Job Centers, Alaska Native organizations, and other agencies to provide support services for individuals entering the broadband talent pipeline through federal and state funding. 

4. Augment federal and state funding to provide additional funding mechanisms to support wrap-around services needed to overcome training barriers for targeted populations. 

5. Establish outreach, communication, and collaboration with schools, institutions, training centers, and others to build regional capacity of industry workforce programs. 

6. Establish contracting requirements to ensure diversity while developing legally compliant BEAD projects. 

Strategy 5. Ensure ongoing industry, education/training, labor and workforce partner involvement throughout the planning, implementation, assessment, and continuous improvement stages of the Alaska BEAD Workforce Plan. 

ACTION STEPS

1. Engage broadband/telecommunications employers and contractors during all stages of workforce planning and implementation. 

2. Establish a broadband industry-specific workforce organization that is invested in the success of the workforce plan; employ a full-time Coordinator to ensure success. 

3. Establish regular methods of communication to, from, and among stakeholders. 

4. Develop and carry out processes for implementation, evaluation, and continuous improvement of broadband workforce plan. 

5. Maintain and refresh the akbroadbandworkforce.org website to provide communication avenues such as user forums and to provide updated information. 

6. Establish sustainable funding to support ongoing broadband training and workforce efforts.

Broadband Plan Performance Measures 2024 – 2030: 

Broadband Plan Performance Measures 2024 – 2030: 

• 1,000 new broadband construction and telecommunications workers are recruited and receive pre-employment training. 

• 700 broadband construction and telecommunications workers are employed. 

• Over 50% of BEAD broadband construction and telecommunication jobs are filled by targeted populations. 

• Digital Navigators are deployed in at least 75% of communities who receive expanded broadband access under BEAD projects. 

• Statewide Broadband Industry CTEPS is developed and made available to every school district and postsecondary institution in Alaska. 

• The telecommunications industry has created and implemented an Industry Sector Strategic Workforce Development Plan. 

• An industry led workforce development organization has been created to continue, expand, and improve education, training, and employment for broadband construction and deployment jobs. 

• Annual assessments of education, training, occupation employment, demographics, earnings, and job retention are carried out at the state and six regional levels. 

• Contracting requirements to ensure diversity while developing legally compliant BEAD projects have been established. 

• Sustainable funding has been established to support ongoing broadband workforce efforts. 

_{* Targeted populations for the Alaska Digital Equity Plan and BEAD Workforce Plan are: 1) Low-income individuals (at or below 150% of poverty level); 2) Individuals aged 60 or older; 3) Incarcerated individuals, other than in a Federal facility; 4) Veterans; 5) Individuals with disabilities; 6) Individuals with a language barrier; 7) Members of a racial or ethnic minority group; and 8) Rural Alaskans. (Digital_Equity_Overview.pdf (wsimg.com))}

After reviewing the Mission statement and goals, if you would like to comment on any of them please provide your feedback and comments HERE. Thank you for your input