For too many students, the misalignment of high school and postsecondary mathematics requirements is an unnecessary barrier to reaching their academic and career goals. Although the nature of careers has evolved over time, mathematics curriculum and instruction have largely remained unchanged; but in recent years, some states’ postsecondary and K-12 Read more
Employers in six communities in Georgia, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Texas announced a series of new commitments to address and promote inclusion and belonging in the workplace for young employees of color. These commitments are the culmination of a unique collaboration supported by America’s Promise Alliance, known as Read more
As youth apprenticeship has gained traction across the United States, many programs have adopted the Partnership to Advance Youth Apprenticeship (PAYA) Definition & Principles for Youth Apprenticeship to guide program design and implementation. Building from those principles, PAYA has developed a new Youth Apprenticeship Quality Assessment Tool as a piece Read more
Navigating pathways through high school, higher education and training, and into the workforce can be overwhelming for students and families. Families need to be engaged early and often to ensure they have the resources and support they need to make informed decisions. But as the economy has shifted—including dramatic changes Read more
The economic and societal instability brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic compounded and laid bare the inequities in American education and workforce systems. It also forced policymakers to go to extraordinary lengths to ensure that programs remained accessible. Amid these unprecedented challenges, the states in the National Governors Association Center’s Read more
Excel in Ed has established the first comprehensive learner-centered education to workforce continuum for state policy, Pathways Matter. Beginning in K-12 and extending to and through postsecondary and on to employment, this resource takes the fragmented narrative and structure of state education to workforce policy efforts and turns it into Read more
A new issue brief from the Center for American Progress, Preparing Students of Color for the Future Workforce, applies a race equity, community-centered lens to understand how to prepare Black, Latinx, and Indigenous students for college and the workforce. Major themes emerged from community conversations, which have allowed the authors Read more
A new national survey by Carnegie Corporation of New York and Gallup, Family Voices: Building Pathways from Learning to Meaningful Work, reveals a disconnect between the opportunities families want for their children and the postsecondary pathways available to them. It offers new insights into the aspirations that parents have for Read more
Bruno Manno of the Walton Family Foundation and Lynn Olson of FutureEd recently partnered to propose a new bipartisan education agenda focusing on offering multiple career pathways to students. Excerpts from the piece appear below: The new career pathways emerging around the country exemplify what University of Texas law professor Read more
A report released by The YES Project at America’s Promise Alliance provides key insights into young people’s conceptions of the changing employment landscape and what it means to be ready for, connected to, and supported within today’s world of work. Drawing from interviews with 65 young people, ages 16-28, who Read more
Bellwether Education Partners has released a new policy scan titled, “Working to Learning and Learning to Work: A State-by-State Analysis of High School Work-based Learning Policies.” Excerpts from the report appear below: Work-based learning – including internships, youth and pre-apprenticeships, and cooperative education programs – allows students to gain work Read more
Postsecondary education is vital to thrive, not just survive. Eighty percent of good-paying jobs require postsecondary education, and 56 percent require a bachelor’s degree or higher. While the nation’s high school graduation rate has reached an all-time high of 85 percent, students are insufficiently prepared for postsecondary education and the Read more
A new report from Georgetown Center on Education and the Workforce explores how 120 knowledge areas, skills, and abilities are demanded across the workforce and within specific occupations—and how the intensity with which workers use these competencies, along with their education level, can affect their earnings. Workers need more than Read more
New research by the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU) finds 11 key skills gaps among college graduates. These skills include the following: Understand Role in the Workplace and Have Realistic Career Expectations Recognize and Deal Constructively with Conflict Accept and Apply Critique and Direction in the Workplace Listen Read more
Writing for The 74, Bruno Manno explores programs that help nurture students’ occupational identities and vocational selves. Excerpts from the piece appear below: New partnerships are emerging across the U.S. that create innovative educational approaches to preparing America’s young people for jobs, careers and further education, helping them develop an Read more
Between 2013 and 2018, the number of apprenticeship programs in the U.S. more than doubled, and the U.S. Department of Labor reports that the return on investment of apprenticeship programs is 147%. Although apprenticeships have long been viewed as for blue-collar industries, tech companies and small businesses in a variety Read more