Beyond generating thousands of new college graduates each year, The University of Alabama contributes to the state’s workforce in numerous ways. Programs around campus and beyond are developing Alabamians through innovative methods to have the knowledge and skills to succeed in countless occupations.
Computer Skills Training and More
The Culverhouse LIFT program, which stands for Learning Initiative and Financial Training, provides teens and adults in the Tuscaloosa and West Alabama communities with resources to improve job skills. Its primary goal is to provide free classes for those who may not have access to courses or training. In addition, the program aims to support the small business community through the provision of courses that will help their businesses grow and succeed.
The joint initiative of the Culverhouse College of Business dean’s office and Culverhouse School of Accountancy offers courses that include computer program training, financial literary and money management, business communication and professional development, among others.
Since its inception in 2014, more than 2,400 have taken advantage of Culverhouse LIFT’s resources. UA faculty and students along with additional volunteers have provided nearly 30,000 hours of training to enrich and empower program participants.
Cultivating Rural Health Care Providers
The Rural Health Leaders Pipeline, part of the College of Community Health Sciences, offers programs to rural Alabamians to address the shortage of primary care physicians in their local communities. The pipeline is a sequence of programs from high school through medical school that recruit students from rural Alabama who are interested in health care careers and want to practice in rural communities.
Since its creation in 1996, the Rural Medical Scholars Program has placed more than 80 physicians in practice in rural Alabama communities. More than 270 have participated in the program, of which 88% have graduated with medical degrees, 57% have entered primary care residencies, and 46% have entered rural practice in Alabama.
In 2013, the Rural Health Leaders Pipeline was named the Outstanding Program of the Year by the National Rural Health Association.
Promoting Excellence in Hospitality
The UA Center for Economic Development’s Rural Workforce Development program aims to provide unique information, not available elsewhere, that helps to fill data gaps confronted by workforce and economic development professionals and works with local leaders to facilitate the state’s Success Plus Plan, which seeks to add 500,000 more high-skilled workers to the workforce by 2025.
One project UACED oversees is the Flawless Delivery Hospitality Certification, an experiential workshop that brings hospitality employees together for training at a local hotel to be certified in Flawless Delivery©. Participants learn essential communication, conflict resolution, empathy and interpersonal skills needed to deliver superior customer service. Certification provides a standard for 21st century service that supports individual career development as well as the industry’s growth.
Through these programs and others, UA remains committed to its core value to public outreach and service that is held in the highest regard and fosters impactful public engagement to enhance the quality of life for the citizens of Alabama, the nation and the world.
The Alabama Impact
The University of Alabama is driving growth, boosting innovation and supporting communities throughout the state of Alabama.