Highlighting Efforts To Close Skills Gap, Hochul Meets With Faculty And Students At Niagara Career And Technical Education Center

Today, Representative Kathy Hochul (NY-26) toured the Niagara Career and Technical Education Center meeting with faculty and students to discuss efforts to bridge the skills gap. Currently, almost 600,000 skilled labor jobs remain unfulfilled across the U.S. due to lack of qualified candidates.

“Every day I hear from companies across Western New York about their inability to find enough American workers with the sufficient technical skills and training to meet their needs,” said Rep. Hochul. “Here at Niagara Career and Technical Education Center they are taking steps to bridge the skills gap training almost 1,600 students across 23 technical and skilled trade programs. My goal is to leave no job unfilled in Western New York, and I am committed to working with our local business and schools to reach that end.”

“We are very excited about the opportunity to show Representative Hochul our facility and to meet our staff and student body.  As someone who sees the value of providing our youth with a career and technical education to ensure America has a skilled workforce, she is a great advocate to have.  We are honored to have someone visit us who cares so passionately about making sure that students get opportunities to succeed in school and the workforce,” said Joseph Steinmetz, Director of Career and Technical Education.

Hochul met with students and faculty in project based engineering, heating ventilation and air conditioning, welding, and auto tech.

The Niagara Career and Technical Education Center offers 23 programs of study in technical and skilled trade including auto tech, HVAC, precision machining, and welding.  Approximately 1600 students matriculate across two campuses in Sanborn and Medina NY.

Rep. Hochul has introduced a school to work initiative, the Workforce-Ready Educate America Act. She has held four roundtable discussions across Western New York on the topic.