The Role of Higher Education in the Future of Workforce Development

NEW YORK - April 10, 2015 - PRLog -- While most countries around the world have seen an unprecedented expansion of their education and skill base over the past decades, a persistent gap still exists between the kind of knowledge and skills that are most in demand in the workplace and those that education and training systems continue to provide. In this environment, the German dual system of vocational training is increasingly seen as a major contributor to narrowing the skills gap. On Wednesday, April 15, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., a panel of experts will convene at the German Center for Research and Innovation (GCRI) in New York to explore best practices as well as areas that need to be improved in the field of workforce development.

Dr. Jim Barrott, Vice President for Technology and Director of the Tennessee College of Applied Technology at Chattanooga State Community College, will provide an overview of the role of community colleges in workforce development. In particular, he will offer examples from Chattanooga State on how to develop effective relationships with business and industry. He will also elaborate on what is so unique about the Volkswagen and Chattanooga State relationship. Dr. Barrott has served in various leadership roles over the past 28 years at Chattanooga State. He is known on campus for his entrepreneurial approach to education and workforce development.

He will be joined by Sebastian Patta, Executive Vice President for Human Resources at the Volkswagen Group of America, Chattanooga Operations, LLC, who will discuss how his company strongly believes in the education of its workforce and as one example, has therefore implemented a successful apprenticeship model. Furthermore, he will address the new challenges associated with increased digitization. Volkswagen recognizes its workforce as capital and an investment for the future since no company can be successful without well-educated employees. Finally, Mr. Patta will comment on how Volkswagen invests in employees by giving them the opportunity for lifelong learning and the ability to pursue a successful career path.

Prior to Mr. Patta’s current assignment, he led the Personnel Department at Volkswagen in Braunschweig from 2011 to 2013. Mr. Patta started his career at VW in Wolfsburg as an apprentice going through the dual vocational training as an industrial clerk. Later he transferred to the Volkswagen health insurance division where he held a wide array of responsibilities in marketing, communication, human resources, and administration for 16 years.

Dr. Sanjoy Mahajan, Visiting Associate Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Associate Professor of Applied Science and Engineering at the Olin College of Engineering, will speak about higher education reform in the U.S. Over the last 30 years, U.S. higher education has undergone a paradigm shift: from education as a public to a private good. Dr. Mahajan will discuss how education and learning have become a means instead of an end as well as how education, and going into debt, are becoming an "investment" and a financial calculation. Paying off debt is guiding choice of career, putting knowledge into private instead of public service.

Dr. Mahajan obtained his Ph.D. in theoretical physics from the California Institute of Technology, after undergraduate degrees in mathematics from Oxford and in physics from Stanford. Inspired by wonderful teachers, he has devoted his career to improving how we teach and learn science and engineering.

Stefanie Jehlitschka, Vice President of the German American Chamber of Commerce of the Southern U.S., Inc., will moderate the discussion. Ms. Jehlitschka initiated the joint AHK (German Chambers of Commerce) USA brand and developed the chamber’s communication plan. She currently heads the nationwide workforce initiative for the German Dual Vocational Training System in the United States.

This panel discussion will take place on Wednesday, April 15, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the German Center for Research and Innovation (871 United Nations Plaza, First Avenue, btw. 48^th & 49^th Streets). To RSVP by April 10, click here (http://www.jotformpro.com/form/50706423182954).

Unable to attend? Follow @gcri_ny (https://twitter.com/gcri_ny) and the hashtag #skillsgap for live tweets. A video recording will be available on www.germaninnovation.org shortly after the event.

This event is co-sponsored by the German Center for Research and Innovation (GCRI) and Volkswagen of America, Inc.

The German Center for Research and Innovation (http://www.germaninnovation.org/) provides information and support for the realization of cooperative and collaborative projects between North America and Germany. With the goal of enhancing communication on the critical challenges of the 21st century, GCRI hosts a wide range of events from lectures and exhibitions to workshops and science dinners. Opened in February 2010, GCRI was created as a cornerstone of the German government’s initiative to internationalize science and research and is one of five centers worldwide.