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Advanced industries that heavily rely on science, technology, engineering and math and invest significantly in research and development are the lifeblood of Indiana’s economy. From 2008 to 2023, the impact of advanced industries on Indiana’s GDP grew 81%. Over the last five years, those industries created more than 100,000 jobs in the state, and by 2028, more than 1 million Hoosiers could be employed in these high-salaried, high-impact careers—but only if we work now to train them.
To ensure these advanced industries can continue to fuel Indiana’s and America’s success, we must be intentional about building and empowering the workforce driving them.
Today, America’s competitors are investing heavily in R&D and their own STEM workforces, and our global innovation leadership is no longer a given. That’s why we joined more than 70 leaders from industry, academia, philanthropy and policymaking to create a road map to support America’s global leadership. The Vision for American Science and Technology is rooted in the need for an all-of-America approach to ensuring the United States remains the vanguard on an increasingly competitive world stage. A major component of this vision is building the strongest and most adaptable workforce in human history, and Indiana has a key role to play.
An exceptional workforce is essential to building the science and technology enterprise of tomorrow. And yet, our students are falling behind those in competing countries. China has overtaken the United States in awarding science and engineering doctorates, and even at American institutions, U.S.-born students are less likely than international students to pursue STEM degrees. We need concerted action to position Americans to achieve their full potential, provide pathways to better jobs and prosperity, meet workforce needs, and enhance our ability to compete globally.
We must drive partnerships between industry and community colleges, technical colleges, trade schools, research universities and others to create future-focused career pathways and enable lifelong learning. The private sector continues to invest in and create jobs in Indiana, in part because Ivy Tech Community College and other postsecondary institutions have developed educational pathways alongside industry to produce the skilled talent they need to thrive. These partnerships create a win-win scenario.
Another way to build a strong and adaptable workforce is to empower local leaders to align American resources through regionally based science and technology economic hubs that are co-created and co-funded by the private sector and government. These hubs will spur efficiencies and create pathways to good-paying jobs, further incentivize private-sector investment in upskilling for critical jobs using tools such as targeted tax credits, and create new science and research career pathways for operators and technicians to become competency-based scientists.
Indiana is already leaning into this vision, as higher education institutions like Ivy Tech have been actively engaged in these tech hub planning efforts, which are attracting millions of dollars in federal investment to the state. This collaborative approach advances innovation and ensures Indiana’s workforce is ready to thrive in the industries of tomorrow.
Federal funding for science and technology is critical, but continuing America’s global science and technology leadership will not happen solely due to decisions made in Washington. For our country and Indiana to meet this moment and move at the pace of technological change, we must enable industry, government and the nonprofit sector to reduce redundancies, eliminate red tape, incentivize collaboration and engage Americans everywhere.
Indiana’s own Ivy Tech is a shining example of the role community colleges can play in this pursuit. Imagine what we might do when we all align behind a shared Vision for American Science and Technology.•
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Ellspermann is the outgoing president of Ivy Tech Community College. Parikh is CEO of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
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