Transportation Education Development Program Partnership Announced At Delaware State University

Dover -- Governor Jack Markell joined with Department of Transportation (DelDOT) Secretary Carolann Wicks, Delaware State University (DSU) President Dr. Harry L. Williams, and Associate Secretary of Education Dr. Amelia Hodges on the university campus, to announce the formal agreement between DelDOT and DSU which creates the Transportation Education Development Program (TED). The one of a kind program will establish education and training courses at DSU aimed at developing curriculums for potential employees, and to create awareness of possible careers in surface transportation.

Noting how the new partnership supports his initiative to enhance education in Delaware, Governor Markell stated: "This partnership benefits students and the state by preparing some of our future transportation workers, whether they will become engineers, appraisers, surveyors or land planning specialists. It's in our interest and theirs to make sure they enter the workforce educated, trained, and prepared to succeed with a clear path forward."

Secretary Wicks noted the importance of the program to the department: "Today's agreement with Delaware State University will help the Department of Transportation tap into a previously under-utilized resource, to help us prepare current and future potential employees with the education and skills necessary to move into the future."

DelDOT, the Department of Education (DOE), the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), and DSU will partner in this program to provide training in support fields for workers in transportation. As DelDOT's current workforce changes due to retirements in the future, the training programs and courses that will be offered will help to ensure that the knowledge and skills needed by future DelDOT workers are available and maintained.

University President Dr. Williams noted: "The partnership provides our young people with a roadmap toward great careers and professional growth in the transportation arena. It also fits right into our University's vision to assist the state with targeted needs--in this case the professionals and skills needed to fulfill the goals of Delaware's transportation blueprint."

The partnership agencies will sustain pipeline activities that will highlight possible transportation careers for potential employees, as well as the academic offerings at DSU. The program will also take advantage of an existing partnership for the recruitment of engineers, and will include Delaware Technical and Community College in the collaborative effort. DelDOT will coordinate with the DOE for outreach efforts to schools in order to create an awareness of existing programs and careers in education that will be available.

The program, which was specifically designed in Delaware, also supports an Executive Order by President Barack Obama to encourage relationships between federal agencies, state agencies which are the recipients of federal funds, and Historically Black Colleges and Universities.