In just its first year, SUNY Oneonta’s Extended and Community Learning (ExCL) Center secured $2 million in grant funding and served more than 2,300 learners across the region – delivering professional training, workforce development, and community enrichment programming for learners of all ages.
Since opening its downtown Oneonta location on Dietz Street in April 2024, the ExCL Center has quickly become a regional hub for extended and community learning, connecting education to careers, credentials and community needs.
The ExCL Center offers opportunities for non-degree or visiting students seeking professional/workforce training or microcredentials, community members taking personal enrichment workshops, high school students registering for College in High School programs, and much more.
“Throughout the year, the ExCL Center leverages SUNY system partnerships and community collaborations to ensure learners have seamless pathways to degrees, certifications and employment,” says Misty Fields, director of Extended and Community Learning and the SUNY Oneonta ExCL Center.
Working with SUNY Broome, SUNY Cobleskill, Mohawk Community College and the Mohawk Valley Economic Development District, the ExCL Center has hosted manufacturing bootcamps and other workforce training in its downtown Oneonta location.
“I saw an opportunity to get out into the workforce and find a long-term career without having to move outside my community,” says Jayden Trask, graduate of the Fall 2025 SUNY Oneonta’s Advanced Manufacturing Training. “The program taught me more than I expected. My goal now is to find a job where I can be my best – maybe operate a CNC machine and become a programmer in the future.”
Three new microcredentials were introduced this year for College and Career Counseling Advanced Skills, Addictions Counseling and Direct Support Professional 3, and more are being added each semester.
Community members have enthusiastically reserved space for a growing menu of workshops, including the 5 Hour Pre-Licensing Course, Babysitting Training, Bookkeeping Basics, Estate Planning, Financial Literacy, First Aid/CPR/Pediatric CPR, Glass Blowing, GRE/SAT Test- Prep, SERV Safe Food Handler and Manager Certification.
The ExCL Center partners with community organizations such as the CDO Workforce Center to hold events including Mini Job Fairs on the second Thursday of each month. Working with other organizations such as the Alzheimer’s Association, The Arc Otsego, Bassett Healthcare, the Community Foundation of Otsego County, Oneonta NAACP, Otsego County Chamber, Otsego County Office of Aging and Springbrook allow the ExCL Center to design activities that meet the most pressing needs for our region.