The Fiber Broadband Association’s Optical Telecom Installer Certification (OpTIC Path) program celebrated two events recently.
The first is winning the 2025 Workforce Development Award from Broadband Communities, which was presented at the organization’s annual summit.
“OpTIC Path has become a critical engine for workforce readiness across North America,” Deborah Kish, Vice President of Research and Workforce Development at the Fiber Broadband Association said in a press release. “This award and the enthusiasm we’re seeing from colleges, students, and employers show that momentum is building-and we’re just getting started.”
The other milestone was the organization’s first OpTIC Path Rodeo, which was held at Fiber Connect 2025 in Nashville. It was a competition between OpTIC Path program graduates from across the country. They tried to best each other in fiber splicing, troubleshooting, and technical knowledge.
OpTIC Path is a training regimen that is offered through community colleges, workforce boards and training providers. It prepares students to install, test, troubleshoot and maintain fiber networks. The OpTIC Path program is on track to graduate 600 fiber technicians this year and 1,200 during the next five years.
In January, The Wireless Infrastructure Association (WIA) announced it will that it would expand its use of OpTIC Path program and include in its Telecommunications Education Center curriculum.
Last November, the program was listed on the North Carolina Careers site. It had been submitted by Wilson Community College and received endorsement from the North Carolina Workforce Credential Advisory Council.
Last September, Telecompetitor spoke with Kish. She said that it is important to “train deep,” which she interprets as teaching to understand fiber and broadband connectivity as well as the practical skills they need to do the job.
In practical terms, this means that the OpTIC Path program curriculum uses a nearly evenly split approach — about 40% is dedicated to theoretical training and 60% is dedicated to hands-on training.
