On Thursday, December 8, Gov. Asa Hutchinson discussed a report generated by the Arkansas Council on Future Mobility. The Council was appointed in February of 2022 under an executive order, and it wrapped up its work with the report discussed by the governor. Dr. Jason Morrison represented SAU Tech and the two-year college training capability in Arkansas for the Council. He provided insight and information to the others on the Council regarding the flexibility and ability of the two-year colleges in developing training programs and realistically partnering with K-12 in the future.

Dr. Morrison stated, "Two-year colleges provide the flexibility needed to implement technical training programs to support the production of advanced mobility vehicles and technology. Many of us already offer electronics programs and cybersecurity or computer programming degrees and certifications. Two-year colleges have experience and expertise working with industries to identify workforce skill requirements to create training programs and provide the training. Providing tailored training programs quickly and efficiently is the role of the two-year college; we are the bridge between economic development and workforce expansion. I do not believe there is another entity on the higher education landscape that can rapidly adapt to train mobility technicians other than two-year colleges."

The report stated that SAU Tech is already doing excellent work to strengthen training and education tailored to the defense industry. Adding a Center of Excellence will expand efforts like that of SAU Tech to encompass participating schools in Arkansas with a focus on aerospace and future mobility workforce training and education.

The work of the Council is summarized in a report that can be found here. Click here