Late last week, New Mexico announced a program designed to help state residents gain certifications that the state says will help them acquire broadband industry-related jobs.
The program is free of charge, with monthly classes and workshops administered by the New Mexico Office of Broadband Access and Expansion (OBAE) and paid for by the U.S. Congress. Building Industry Consulting Service International (BICSI) will provide lab equipment, workbooks, tools, and all teaching equipment.
The funding for the three-year broadband workforce program comes from a $1.99 million federal grant New Mexico received from the 2024 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Appropriations Act. Last year, New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham asked state agencies in 2024 to address the critical need for infrastructure development in the state, including telecommunications.
The classes, offered at various locations throughout the state, will include five days of training, offering hands-on experience on:
- Copper-based cabling installation
- Introductory installation
- Optical fiber installation
- Technician training
“The state workforce development plan identifies broadband expansion as a priority sector because the industry is critical to New Mexico’s future and offers good jobs with strong career ladders,” Sarita Nair, DWS Cabinet Secretary, said in a prepared statement.
“With historic broadband investments underway, this partnership and training program, together with our other broadband workforce initiatives across the state, are preparing New Mexicans for the jobs needed to build equitable broadband access statewide.”
Texas instituted a similar workforce development program last year, which was designed to cultivate and develop a workforce that can build, maintain, and expand a statewide fiber-based broadband network.
Broadband workforce development has been an issue for many years. In fall 2024, Fiber Broadband Association Vice President for Research and Workforce Development Deborah Kish told Telecompetitor that it was past time to start developing the workforce: “Part of the issue is that everyone is waiting on this BEAD [Broadband Equity, Access, and Development Program] money to roll out, but you can’t build out without a workforce. And you can’t build with the workforce we have today.”
