Workforce Development

Nursing Innovation Hub

With more than 50 years of experience in nursing education, Miami University has long-standing partnerships with local hospitals, agencies, and industry. Opened on the Hamilton campus in 2021, Miami University Regionals Nursing Innovation Hub provides students and faculty with access to a state-of-the-art teaching environment. The 26,000 square foot facility underwent a $10 million renovation and now features high-tech, high-touch simulation labs, multibed nursing skills labs, and classrooms equipped with the newest teaching technology.

Simulation spaces representing obstetrics, pediatrics, medical/ surgical, and an intensive care unit are available, along with a simulated apartment, which allows students to learn and practice key principles related to home care and related safety measures. The growing number of students in the program will benefit from study areas and huddle rooms for further simulation of health care facility operations.

The Nursing Innovation Hub enables Miami Regionals to partner with regional hospital systems and health care facilities to cocreate innovative solutions to current and future health care challenges. By focusing on the development of clinical judgment and patient safety in a low-risk environment, Miami University Nursing is preparing students to become the next generation of skilled Hamilton-area nurses.

Talent Attraction Program

The Talent Attraction Program (TAP) is a reverse scholarship given by the Hamilton Community Foundation to recent graduates of science, technology, engineering, arts, and math (STEAM) degrees, in order to incentivize young professionals to relocate to Hamilton’s urban core. The program provides up to $10,000 in the form of monthly $300 payments for recipients to put toward their student loans, as long as they work in (or remotely from) Butler County and live within one of the target neighborhoods.

The goals of the program are to help ease the national student debt crisis, minimize the talent drain from the community, support local revitalization efforts, increase entrepreneurship, and fill skilled and educated job openings in the area.

The program is the first of its kind in Ohio, and has seen great success since it first began in 2018. The Foundation has awarded 14 recipients thus far, out of a total of 120 applicants from across 20 states. The average age of awardees is 27, and the average total debt is $50,000. Applications open on March 5th and can be submitted at www.hamiltonfoundation.org/scholarships.

WORK+

Now in its second year, the Work Plus Program has doubled its number of participating businesses in 2021. The program hires students at Miami Regional campuses into entry level positions for local companies. They work 24 hours a week and commit to the company one year at a time. The employer then provides an hourly wage and also pays the student’s tuition and general fees as well. Miami officials describe the program as a win-winwin for students, the school, and industries. “They get to work. They get to make a little money, and they get to go college debt free.” Students get ahead of the game in job searching because they have valuable experience, and ahead in life by coming out of school without debt. Ohio higher education officials have been so impressed with Work Plus they are pushing Miami’s approach to colleges and universities across the state.

11 $15 12 PARTICIPANTS PARTNERS BASE PAY WEEKS

2021 was the first full year of operation for the Citywide Hamilton Internship Program (CHIPs), a city-led initiative that connects young black and brown residents with paid internships at local companies. CHIPs’ mission is to reduce employment barriers by directly connecting untapped black talent to companies who recognize the need for a diverse workforce. CHIPs recruits ambitious, hardworking interns who are on the cusp of success but might have otherwise been overlooked. The program lasts 12 weeks, with interns receiving job coaching, leadership training, skill building, a CHIPs mentor, and a mentor from their worksite. The program also actively works with participants to foster an enduring relationship with their peers, the Hamilton community, and the CHIPs leadership that persists even after the 12 weeks are over.

Student participants gain hands-on experience, industry-specific skills, engagement in company culture, and a connection with industry

30 professionals. Additionally, the program helps them to recognize pathways to greater career opportunites, and enables them to enter the workforce newly confident in their abilities.

Companies gain assistance in addressing issues such as labor shortages, lack of qualified applicants, ineffective outreach efforts, and challenges tapping into minority communities. CHIPS works as a solution and helps them to expand their talent pool, developing skilled workers, and sustain the local market while coaching a diverse workforce, leading to improved performance.

In 2021, the Ohio Economic Development Association highlighted CHIPs as part of the Annual Excellence Awards program, which recognizes the achievements of those throughout Ohio that have developed innovative workforce and economic development practices.