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The Fiber Broadband Association (FBA) estimates the country will need 205,000 fiber-optic technicians to meet the demand created by the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program.

While large amounts of capital become available to build out the nation’s fiber infrastructure network, fiber industry trade groups, like the FBA, are focused on making sure there is enough skilled labor to meet construction demands.

One program that is likely to lead many into a fiber-centric career is the FBA’s Optical Telecom Installer Certification (OpTIC Path), which the FBA said was created to close the gap in skilled technicians who are available to deploy fiber broadband.

Gary Bolton, the CEO and president of the FBA, said the association estimates the country will need 205,000 fiber-optic technicians to meet the demand created by the BEAD program.

“We’re focused a lot on the community colleges,” said Bolton, who recently spoke to Broadband Communities.

Bolton said the FBA also partners with private training institutes, like Learning Alliance in Tampa, which is offers certification courses for telecommunication careers. He said Learning Alliance is very focused on veterans.

Bolton said the FBA has also been looking at options he called non-traditional. He said the FBA has developed initiatives in states, like Ohio, to recruit people exiting the correctional system.

“This is employment that’s available in every community,” Bolton said, and added that it’s the type of career that can begin with a high-paying salary.

The FBA has released workforce development guidebooks, which Bolton said were sent to all state broadband offices.

“Workforce development is an eligible expense for the BEAD program,” he said. “What we’re worried about is (states) start getting all this money and then there’s not going to be the people to develop this training.”

In total, the FBA is engaged with 67 community colleges, 40 service providers, and 39 states to rollout the OpTIC Path program, according to a September announcement on the FBA’s website. The announcement said the OpTIC Path program is also involved with electric cooperatives in Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, Tennessee, and Oklahoma.

In states like North Carolina, where FBA Vice President of Research and Workforce Development Deborah Kish has joined the North Carolina’s broadband workforce advisory committee, agencies are tasked with developing and implementing multiyear plans and initial proposals for the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA).

In September, Kish said she’s honored to work with North Carolina on a workforce development plan. North Carolina is expected to receive $1.5 billion in BEAD funding, the fifth-largest amount given to any state, according to the FBA.

“It is exciting to see every state receive allocations to improve fiber broadband infrastructure and now is the time to ensure there is qualified labor to build that infrastructure,” Kish said.