Shippensburg University’s Office of Workforce Development (OWD) offers customized workforce training, professional development courses, and certificate and degree programs.
For companies and organizations, OWD offers customized, professional workforce development programs tailored to meet the specific needs of the entity and its employees. Additionally, OWD works with the Workforce and Economic Development Network of Pennsylvania (WEDnetPA), which brings training funds to qualified companies across the Commonwealth to help improve the skills and productivity of their workers. Individuals in the community may also sign up for individually offered noncredit courses.
Opportunities for Ship Faculty and Staff
The Office of Workforce Development offers unique opportunities for faculty and staff to teach material they are passionate about to a wider audience.
Our office is committed to serving the non-traditional learner through programs that fit within their budget and lifestyle needs. This provides greater opportunities for you to create new projects, redesign current ones and join us in existing projects. OWD offerings include providing noncredit courses, customized workforce training, and exploring new ways of doing traditional programs.
- Let us know about your areas of expertise by filling out our Survey
- Already have an idea for a Non-Credit Program you’d like to develop? Fill out the Noncredit Proposal Form to get started.
- You can also Contact Us directly and talk to our team about any questions you have about working with our office
- To learn more, please look at our Guidebook or consult any of the resources below.
Dr. Matthew R. Shupp
Professor, Department of Counselor Education
Dr. Matthew R. Shupp, who is not only a professor in the Department of Counselor Education at Shippensburg University, but also a National Certified Counselor (NCC) and a board-certified Tele-Mental Health Provider (BC-TMH), has long-since established himself as an extremely valued partner of the Office of Workforce Development. Due to his extraordinary partnership and his incredible work for the OWD’s Frontline Leadership Credentialing Program, the Office of Workforce Development has chosen Dr. Shupp for the very first faculty spotlight.
Dr. Shupp’s experience and expertise has been an evidently important asset as an instructor across a wide range of leadership programs, including the Frontline Leadership Credentialing Program, the Hershey Park Leadership Development Initiative, and the Pennsylvania Bankers Association’s Career and Leadership Skills Academy. In these roles, Dr. Shupp has delivered impactful lessons on Emotional Intelligence, Dealing with Difficult People and Workplace Toxicity, and Generational Dynamics in the Workplace. “I’ve experienced first-hand the opportunities and programs that offices like the Office of Workforce Development provide,” expressed Dr. Shupp. “It was an easy decision when asked if I wanted to partner with them.”
Shupp developed and teaches his own course on Emotionally Intelligent Leadership at Shippensburg University. He is very well known for his positive energy and passion for combining creativity and non-traditional teaching methods. His hard work and enthusiasm are evident in every class, as he fosters a supportive environment where participants can thrive. “Everything he spoke about was very eye-opening,” one student who took his class had expressed. “It will help me grow into the leader that I wish to be.”
Some of Dr. Shupp’s recent projects include one where he created a new workshop for working with toxic individuals in the workplace, as well as currently working with the Office of Workforce Development on a self-paced asynchronous training on Leading with Emotional Intelligence. When asked about what advice he would give to other educators or professionals looking to get involved with the Office of Workforce Development, he replied: “This is what we do. Educators prepare folks to be global citizens. We all have information to share, either directly under our professional purview or, at minimum, tangentially. So, get involved!”
In order to learn more about how to work with our office, how to make a noncredit proposal, and what our requirements for instructors are, please look at our Guidebook . Topics in the guidebook include:
- Mission and Vision Statements (pg. 3)
- Noncredit Background and Philosophy (pg. 4)
- Shippensburg’s Noncredit Quality Assurance Process (pg. 6)
- Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion Statement (pg. 7)
- Terms and Conditions (pg. 8)
- Roles and Responsibilities (pg. 11)
- Information for New Instructors (pg. 12)
- Pay Models (pg. 13)
- Travel Pay (pg. 12)
- Continuing Education Credits (CEU’s) (pg. 14)
- Noncredit Quality Assurance Rubric - Labor Market  (pg. 16)
- Noncredit Quality Assurance - Course Development  (pg. 20)
- Style Guide and Accessibility Information (pg. 23)
- Dual Employment Form (pg. 24)
- Noncredit Agreement Form (pg. 25)
- Accounts Payable Form (pg. 26)
- Course Evaluations (pg. 27)
For help with the non-credit proposal process:
- Noncredit Procedures Manual
- Act 48 Information
- The OWD Website
- Developing an Noncredit Program Checklist
For help instructing adult learners:
The Office of Workforce Development offers an ongoing discount to SU employees for many of the training opportunities we offer. There are many skill-building courses to take advantage. Most of them are online, self-paced options. In addition to what we offer through our 3rd party vendors, we have training offered by our excellent faculty and staff. For more information, visit our website at workforce.ship.edu or contact our office at owd@ship.edu.
Discounts are below:
- Condensed Curriculum (CCI) – 10% (SHIP10)
- AppDiction – 20% (SHIP20)
- MindEdge – 20% (SHIPP20)
- SU Noncredit Courses – 20% (contact our office to receive the discount)
Please contact our office if you have any questions.
Which courses will be offered with the Google partnership?
Originally, we were given access to 4 certificates, but they have increased that to 9:
- Cybersecurity
- IT Support
- IT Automation with Python
- UX Design
- Digital Marketing & E-commerce
- Project Management
- Data Analytics
- Advanced Data Analytics
- Business Intelligence
What is the cost to the students?
The courses themselves are free with a Coursera subscription (~$40/month); however, Google gave us 500 Coursera licenses we can use. If you would like a license, just fill out this form.
What this basically means is that we have 500 free "seats" in a class we're able to offer at a time. Those 500 people wouldn't have to pay the Coursera subscription fee to access the classes. Currently, we'll be offering the licenses to SU employees and students, up until we run out. If you have a student who wants to register for a Google certification, please let us know so we can give them one of the free licenses.
Will learners be able to just sign up for one course without needing the full certificate commitment?
Yes. When navigating the course as a whole, you are able to just sign up for one class. You won't be able to get a certificate unless all of the courses have been completed, but just taking one class is possible.
Are there any courses in other languages?
Yes! There is an IT support certificate available in German, Russian, and Spanish
I want to look at the course before I would offer it in my class.
That's totally fair! Let us know if you're interested in that using this form, and we can give you a license so you can access the course itself. If you'd prefer a more brief breakdown, we also have educator guides for each of the courses offered.
Does google offer tech support?
Yes, they do. Both Google and Coursera offer rather prompt responses to any questions and technical difficulties, and there's information about tech support built into the class.