In the mid-1800s, The Morrill Act and later The Hatch Act laid the foundation of what we today recognize as Extension education.  At first, Extension services focused on agricultural prospects and research development.  Through the years, the University of Missouri Extension has expanded its educational reach with programming topics such as health and nutrition, youth development (4-H), economic well-being, as well as agricultural growth and stewardship.  While the Extension of today may look slightly different than the Extension of old, what remains the same is the land-grant institution’s devotion to solving Missouri’s complex challenges.  

From August through November, the University of Missouri Extension hosted six in-person workforce summits across the state and one virtual summit as well.  Supported by funding from the National Center for Higher Education Management Systems through the Serving Rural America Through Land Grant Colleges & Universities: Unlocking the Workforce Development Potential of Extension Services initiative, these summits equipped employers with data driven insights into their regional workforce, opportunities to connect with local resources, and facilitated roundtable discussions to identify next steps for addressing unmet workforce training needs.

Prior to the workforce summits, top themes/issues facing Missouri’s workforce were identified by the participants: talent recruitment and retention, skills and training gaps, and workforce shortages.  Businesses noted that attracting capable talent to rural areas can be difficult.  Seasonal positions in the agriculture and tourism sector are hard-pressed filling roles across our state.  For skills and training, leadership and foundational (soft) skills were noted as needing improvement in our workforce.  Leadership and management training was noted by all employers (for-profit, nonprofit, educational, and governmental).  They noted the necessity to develop an upskilled training approach to move existing employees into managerial roles.  Workforce shortages plague many sectors across the nation.  In Missouri, it was noted by summit participants that healthcare roles, manufacturing jobs, and skilled trades (plumbers, electricians, welders, mechanics, etc.) faced most of the impact.  Reasons for these workforce shortages were attributed to childcare, transportation barriers, housing shortages, and employee reliability

MU Extension faculty led presentations about regional labor market data, highlighting key employment trends and the top jobs employers are hiring for. They also reviewed statewide findings on the most in-demand workforce skills.  Longer-term pressures, such as slower population growth and an aging workforce, are expected to keep the labor supply tight and make talent increasingly scarce. Trends were consistent across Missouri, with all regions experiencing tight labor markets and a similar set of in-demand occupations. While these challenges are national in scope, Missouri’s situation closely reflects that of many Midwestern states, where populations are aging and growing more slowly than the U.S. overall, and unemployment rates tend to be lower.  Summit participants indicated it was helpful to have a better understanding of statewide trends and data, and a great benefit to connect with industry peers and identify relevant training opportunities available in their area.

So, what are Extension’s next steps?  The employers who attended the workforce summits identified that Extension must play the role of a public convenor, coordinating different employment sectors together to strengthen regional workforce development.  Participants specifically noted that more frequent conversations and meetings about Missouri economic and workforce data will only foster more collaborative responses to complex challenges.  Through networking efforts, relationships built with Missouri’s employers can lead Extension to the creation of customized trainings that directly solve issues facing our workforce. 

The University of Missouri Extension is devoted to Serving Missouri, by Delivering Mizzou by providing unbiased, research-based education to our state.  Extension is headquartered in Whitten Hall on Mizzou’s campus in Columbia, as well as maintaining a footprint in most Missouri counties at the local Extension office, funded by state and county appropriations.