![]() The College's "teaching in three" program prepares students to become teachers in three years, rather than four. She credits Fuentes' Odessa College as a leader in that effort. With a shortage of 300 teachers in the Permian Basin, Woodley says institutions are working to prepare more teachers to take those jobs. Housing availability is an issue, he says, as are wages in non-oil-and-gas jobs.Ī pedestrian amidst cars, trucks and tractor trailers - traffic and congestion in Midland, Texas. "For us, I think it is crucial that we are able to recruit the best and the brightest faculty and staff here, and the cost of living has been a bit of a problem."įuentes says employers have had to "cast a wider net" to attract the workers they need. "We know we have to double that to even make a dent in the workforce demands that are here," Woodley says. Woodley says the number of degrees granted by UT-Permian Basin has grown by almost 30% in recent years, but that still might not be enough. Sandra Woodley is president of the University of Texas Permian Basin and Jonathan Fuentes is executive dean of academic partnerships at Odessa College. ![]() Texas Standard host David Brown spoke with two Permian Basin experts who are tracking workforce changes in the region. But the shortages are as much about geography and perceptions of what it means to live in West Texas as it is about limitations of the local economy. We can immediately make up the production, and that’s basically almost entirely because of what’s happening right here in the Permian Basin,” Perryman says.Īs West Texas adjusts to the influx of people and economic activity brought about by the energy boom, the area faces shortages in the workforce – particularly teachers and health care professionals. “Now, we just simply have a little blip to adjust to. Today, though, the Permian Basin can pick up the slack. He says decades ago, when OPEC cut oil production by 5% in the 1970s, it led to a long-term oil crisis and recession in the U.S. “This is basically a 5% cut in world production,” Perryman says. He says that “modest” increase can affect energy companies’ bottom lines. Perryman, who lives in Odessa, says oil prices spiked a little after the Saudi Arabia attacks – to about $58 per barrel, up from the low-to-mid $50s. Ray Perryman is president and CEO of The Perryman Group, an economic research and analysis firm based in Waco. Economists say that production in the oil-producing region is what is saving the U.S. But it also made Texas’ Permian Basin seem all the more important. ![]() Last weekend’s drone attack on Saudi oil facilities affected the global oil market. ![]()
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