Absence of conflict of interest.
Citation
POS-IMPACT LLC. (2016). Florida Trade Consortium evaluation final report. Pembroke Pines, FL: POS-IMPACT LLC.
Highlights
- The study’s objective was to examine the impact of participation in the Florida Transforming Resources for Accelerated Degrees and Employment (TRADE) Consortium training programs on earnings.
- The authors used a nonexperimental design to compare the earnings outcomes of TRADE program participants with those of non-participants.
- The study found that TRADE program participation was associated with wage increases. However, the study did not include tests of significance.
- The quality of causal evidence presented in this report is low because the authors did not ensure that the groups being compared were similar before the intervention. This means we are not confident that the estimated effects are attributable to the Florida TRADE program; other factors are likely to have contributed.
Intervention Examined
The Florida Transforming Resources for Accelerated Degrees and Employment (TRADE) Consortium
Features of the Intervention
The U.S. Department of Labor's (DOL) Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College and Career Training (TAACCCT) program provided $1.9 billion in grants to community colleges to improve skills and support employment in high-demand industries, notably manufacturing, health care, information technology, energy, and transportation. Through four rounds of funding, DOL awarded 256 TAACCCT grants to approximately 800 educational institutions across the United States and its territories.
The Florida Transforming Resources for Accelerated Degrees and Employment (TRADE) Consortium was created to provide training programs in the manufacturing industry that would serve as a career pathway. Twelve partner colleges were part of the consortium and served twelve regional areas in Florida. Key strategies of the program included improvement of technical education and training curricula, short-term certification training that can be stacked or latticed towards other credentials or degree programs, partnerships with industry organizations and other education and training programs, outreach, and professional development. The Manufacturing Skills Standard Council's Certified Production Technician (MSS-CPT) credential was the foundational, standard program for participants. Other programs developed and delivered by the consortium were in machining, drafting-design, welding, quality practices in manufacturing, and safety.
Features of the Study
The nonexperimental study was conducted at Florida State College at Jacksonville (Jacksonville, Florida), Pasco-Hernando State College (New Port Richey, Florida), and St. Petersburg College (St. Petersburg, Florida). The authors compared the outcomes of TRADE program participants with those of non-participants (eligible to participate but did not). Across the three colleges, study participants included 2,573 participants in the treatment group and 342 in the comparison group. Using data from the Employ Florida Marketplace database, the authors examined differences in wage growth between the groups.
Findings
Earnings and wages
- The study found that higher proportions of Florida TRADE program participants experienced a wage increase (57%) than non-participants (55%). However, no tests of statistical significance were provided.
Considerations for Interpreting the Findings
The authors did not account for preexisting differences between the groups before program participation or include sufficient control variables. These preexisting differences between the groups—and not the TRADE program—could explain the observed differences in outcomes. Therefore, the study is not eligible for a moderate causal evidence rating, the highest rating available for nonexperimental designs.
Causal Evidence Rating
The quality of causal evidence presented in this report is low because the authors did not ensure that the groups being compared were similar before the intervention. This means we are not confident that effects are attributable to the TRADE program; other factors are likely to have contributed.