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Facing skills gap, employers send workers to college

Feb 28, 2017
Copper tubing manufacturer pays its mechanics to learn advanced skills.
Daniel Waller (left) is manager of maintenance systems at Cambridge-Lee Industries in Reading, Pa. With more employees like Waller, 63, nearing retirement, the company is training workers like Alexander Jones, 23, to replace them.
Amy Scott/Marketplace

Baby boomers retrain in sought-after skills

Feb 27, 2017
About half of jobs today require more than a high school diploma, but less than a college degree.
Joe Snyder, 56, recently graduated from a precision machining technology program at Berks Career and Technology Center near Reading, Pennsylvania.
Amy Scott/Marketplace

Manufacturing is alive and well in Reading, Pennsylvania

Feb 7, 2017
Employers and educators join forces to build a new pipeline of skilled workers.
Benjamin Eckenrode, 18, is taking advanced manufacturing courses at Reading Area Community College while still in high school.
Amy Scott/Marketplace

Skills training is having a moment

Aug 18, 2016
Alternatives to the four-year college degree get a boost.
Hillary Clinton tours Futuramic Tool & Engineering before giving a speech there on the U.S. economy August 11, 2016 in Warren, Michigan. 
Bill Pugliano/Getty Images

Preparing middle-class workers for middle-skill jobs

Apr 25, 2014
Middle-skill jobs can support middle-class lives, but our education system isn’t getting people ready for them.