The following were identified and used in the development of Radford's Strategic Plan for Technology. Public schools in Virginia and other states are placing greater emphases on developing more advanced computer skills for students at all grade levels. Over half of our entering students indicated that they planned to bring a computer with them. Based on a survey of entering students, there is strong interest among most students in further developing their computer skills. There is a great need and opportunity to provide workforce training in technology skills within our service community.
Technology provides mechanisms to deliver instruction and services to our service community.
Technology, particularly through the web, provides opportunities for maintaining connections and providing services to alumni. The demand for employees in technology fields is one of the biggest growth areas of the state and national economy. Virginia currently has over 25,000 job vacancies in the technology industry alone. As the rate of technology change is accelerating, it is becoming increasingly important for educational programs to keep informed of the skills most expected by potential employers of our students. There are increasing opportunities for partnerships with employers to provide continuing training in the workforce.