Having an ATP is not the answer. If I read the transcripts correctly, the FO had over 1,600 hours when the crash happened, meaning she had ATP standards, yet this was her first experience with icing and deicing. Besides, an ATP obtained on the "outside" (ie. a flight school) is just a glorified instrument check ride, not an accurate barometer of experience and/or judgment.

The issue at hand here is not so much the experience level of the FO but more of the Captain. At the regionals, especially a "bottom feeding" outfit like Colgan where the turnover is so great, finding and keeping experienced Captains is difficult. What happens is that you end up pairing an inexperienced FO with a CA who may not have much more experience than the FO. IOW, the FO doesn't have the opportunity to learn or gain experience from a wisened Captain as it should be.

This is typically not an issue at the larger regionals, where movement is stagnant and you have pilots who have been in their respective seats for years. When you have Colgan pilots leave for other regionals, that should tell you something.

Note that I'm painting with a wide brush. I'm sure Colgan has great, experienced Captains, just as I know that there are Captains at large regionals and majors that have no business being there. But when you pay pilots crap and treat them as such, it's hard to keep an experienced work force.