Alamo Colleges Area: 2024 Best Award Winner, No. 8
Students at this higher education institution are not the only ones learning.
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Artificial intelligence is a hot topic right now, so last year the Alamo Colleges District's workforce development team introduced new learning experiences to educate staff about advancements in AI and its many capabilities and limitations for both faculty and students. “We recognized that AI poses unique challenges and opportunities, and we encouraged our faculty and staff to create and provide valuable resources,” explains Esteban Ramon, Learning and TD Specialist at Alamo Colleges.
The institution offers a variety of educational opportunities and learning models, with a particular emphasis on AI and its various applications. Alamo Colleges has five independently accredited colleges and eight education and training centers in the San Antonio, Texas metropolitan area, serving more than 100,000 students through approximately 6,000 employees. Students, or “customers,” earn certificates, participate in accelerated training programs, or complete associate or bachelor's degrees. With so many factors changing, it's important for leaders to stay up to date on the latest technologies that impact learning and information sharing.
In developing AI education, the TD team “early on listened to faculty and staff who wanted training in using AI because we saw the potential to help improve student outcomes and streamline faculty and staff work processes,” Ramon says. To that end, the TD team hosted a workshop with renowned AI expert and author Anna Mills. The event attracted 125 attendees last August, demonstrating the strong interest and demand for AI knowledge within the Alamo Colleges.
The TD department has also developed workshops to provide faculty with a fundamental understanding of large-scale language models such as ChatGPT and their potential applications in the classroom. Since the workshops began in April 2023, 128 faculty have completed them.
“This approach ensures that our new educators are well prepared to leverage AI in their teaching methods and aligns our workforce development efforts with our overarching mission and the evolving needs of our institution,” Ramon said. “Students benefit from gaining hands-on experience with a tool that local employers have identified as an essential skill for potential talent.”
This strategic initiative has played a key role in helping the University foster innovation and remain competitive in the higher education sector.
Top-down training
AI training is just one example of Alamo Colleges' focus on taking a future-proof approach to workforce skilling, as the school has also rolled out a key initiative aimed at addressing the unique challenges facing its senior-level workforce.
“The launch of the Strategic Leadership Institute (SLI) and other management training initiatives has increased participation from senior leaders,” Ramon explains. These programs equip leaders with advanced strategies and “foster a culture of growth and resilience that impacts the entire organization,” he adds.
Buy-in was immediate: Nearly all eligible senior leaders (91%) participated in SLI, highlighting a strong commitment to the ongoing development of senior leadership team members.
One aspect of SLI, the Leadership Academy, serves the needs of deans, directors, and department chairs. The academies hone the skills and behaviors needed to be leaders who inspire others to follow, identify the personal strengths that drive leaders forward, and highlight areas for improvement, Ramon says. The initiative exceeded the TD team's goals, with 58 people participating in the inaugural leadership cohort.
As senior leaders embrace L&D to build their capabilities, an openness to learning is instilled in Alamo Colleges' frontline employees, who welcome new training opportunities provided by the TD team. A new, effective manager training program provides supervisors, managers, and team leaders with a comprehensive understanding of their personal leadership tendencies, strengths, and weaknesses, empowering them to evolve. Participants will be able to identify and leverage their strengths, communicate well with their teams, and lead with confidence and clarity.
The Aspiring Leaders program, which is open to all faculty and staff who aspire to be leaders, focuses on establishing a strong foundation in leadership principles and addressing common challenges faced by emerging leaders. “The program also provides a clear, scalable process for leadership development and fosters collaboration at all levels of the organization,” Ramon points out.
Holistic Education
When designing training opportunities, the TD department always keeps the institution’s students in mind. Over the last year, the TD team has focused on ensuring staff are adequately informed about the resources available to students.
For example, a newly launched Student Parent Resources Program for Faculty and Staff informs employees about opportunities for student parents, such as support services and flexible schedule options, “to close critical gaps and continue on the path to successfully achieve their educational and career goals, achieve social and economic mobility, and in many cases, create generational transition through education,” Ramon said.
An Alamo Colleges education is not limited to professional growth opportunities. With a focus on employee well-being, the TD team launched an initiative aimed at preventing anxiety, stress, depression, and burnout. The company's health and well-being program, AlamoWELL, “grew us as an organization toward the development of the whole person,” Ramon explains. To meet the development needs of employees that take care of both the mind and body, “we started rolling out the Calm app to 2,500 employees and offered the opportunity to expand to five family members and friends,” he says. According to Ramon, the results were impressive, with an 87% engagement rate, more than 62,000 total sessions, and nearly 426,000 recorded minutes of mindfulness within the reporting year.
From AI to apps and everything in between, the Alamo Colleges District TD team keeps employees updated, informed, and ready to lead others into the future of education.
See the full list of 2024 BEST Award winners.
