Technology the Future of Work in Chattanooga

Staff photo by Doug Strickland Anna Steere looks at "The Way We Worked" Smithsonian Exhibit open house at green|spaces. The exhibit showcases the ways in which jobs have changed over time.
Staff photo by Doug Strickland Anna Steere looks at "The Way We Worked" Smithsonian Exhibit open house at green|spaces. The exhibit showcases the ways in which jobs have changed over time.

The Way We Worked

› What: An interactive Smithsonian Institution exhibit› When: Open 9 a.m.-5 p.m., through July 19› Where: Green|Spaces, 63 E. Main St., Chattanooga› Cost: Free› More information: 423-648-0963

If it's not already obvious, technology will dominate the future.

That goes for jobs too, and Chattanooga is no exception, three influencers of the local workforce noted during a panel discussion at green|spaces this week. "Tech-focused" was the answer to the question they had at hand: How might jobs in the Chattanooga area look in the future, and what is the workforce development needed to fill them?

Start at square one, early childhood education, to get going on workforce development, said Tony Donen, the STEM School's principal, and Ben Schnell, Lamp Post Group's tech recruiter.

At STEM, that comes naturally, in part because of the school's focus; its name is an acronym for science, technology, engineering, math. A school that bucks convention (classes start at 9:30 a.m., when children are thought to be more alert than during dark morning hours), STEM's curriculum is rooted in problem- and project-based learning.

At the school, students work on coding, they work in groups - technology is not best applied in silos, Donen said - and they work with businesses to address real problems. Of course, he said, none of this can be measured through traditional ways that students are tested in standardized settings, and that needs to change.

"The factory model of school is the same as 25 years ago," Donen said.

If kids aren't in dynamic scholastic environments they can still learn coding through other resources, TechTown for example, which opens downtown this weekend, Schnell said.

"Coding will be like literacy," Schnell said. "Don't wait until the schools start teaching it. Get those kids to start learning it right now."

Chattanooga's future work-scape also includes other demands, said Fannie Hewlett, interim president of Chattanooga State Community College and the third panel member. They are: advanced manufacturing, health care, hospitality and tourism. In response to demands from area businesses, the school launched a hospitality program last fall, she said.

Needed too is practical short-term training for adults, so that coming jobs can be filled, Donen said. For example, Volkswagen plans to hire 2,000 workers to build another vehicle model.

Wednesday's discussion was timed with the opening of "The Way We Worked," a Smithsonian Institution exhibit whose final stop is Green|Spaces in Chattanooga's Southside. The interactive exhibit, on display through July 19, traces how work environments, some historically dangerous (a 1930s workman casually sitting atop a beam high on the Empire State Building, as he takes a wrench to it), have changed over the past 150 years.

Humanities Tennessee worked with the Smithsonian for more than 10 years to bring the exhibit to the state, said Paul McCoy, a program officer with the organization.

The display uses large-scale images, audio and video recordings and artifacts to explore the history and meaning of work in American society across regions and over time. A prevailing theme is that work has become a central element of American culture.

Bringing the exhibit to Chattanooga was a "natural fit" given the workforce development going on in the city and the area's drumbeat of innovation, McCoy said. "What are the next 150 years going to look like?"

Contact Mitra Malek at mmalek@timesfreepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @MitraMalek.

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