The New Jersey Assembly has approved two bills supported by the New Jersey Business & Industry Association (NJBIA) aimed at enhancing workforce development through community colleges.
Assembly Bill A-5183, sponsored by Assemblywoman Mitchelle Drulis, seeks to require the state's Department of Labor & Workforce Development to create and maintain a list of industry-valued credentials. This initiative aims to provide an objective measure of how well the state is meeting current industry training needs and guide future investments in education and training. The bill passed with a 72-3 vote.
The second bill, A-5182, sponsored by Assemblywoman Linda Carter, intends to modernize the powers and responsibilities of the New Jersey Council of County Colleges (NJCCC). This council collaborates with NJBIA, employers, academia, and other stakeholders on the New Jersey Pathways to Career Opportunities Initiative. The initiative focuses on designing new academic and workforce education pathways aligned with economic needs. This bill was unanimously approved with a 73-0 vote.
Althea D. Ford, NJBIA Vice President of Government Affairs, testified in favor of these bills before the Assembly Higher Education Committee earlier this month. She stated that developing a list of industry-valued credentials is "a common-sense strategy" for connecting with job creators and understanding their credentialing needs.
Ford also praised the efforts of the New Jersey Council of Community Colleges in coordinating workforce training across the state's 18 community colleges. "This unified approach has led to significant investment, partnership and results," she noted.
According to Ford, projects under the New Jersey Pathways to Career Opportunities Initiative have fostered new collaborations like NJ BioFutures—a strategic private-public partnership addressing workforce concerns in pharmaceutical and biomanufacturing industries.
