Jobs for the Future (JFF)’s Post

We’re launching a bold, bipartisan – Commission on the American Workforce – to solve one of America’s greatest challenges: strengthening our workforce and investing in the American people. The challenges are clear: ✅ 2/3 of 4th graders struggle with literacy and math. ✅ College enrollment has stagnated amid doubts about its value. ✅ Nearly half of nonworking women cite child care as a barrier to employment. ✅ Over 1M job openings point to a critical skills mismatch. We’re honored to have two exceptional leaders, former Govs Bill Haslam (R-TN) and Deval Patrick (D-MA), co-chair this vital effort. The commission will focus on: • K-12 education reform • Postsecondary pathways and workforce readiness • Addressing workforce shortages • Enhancing child care, paid leave, and retirement security The time for action is now. The Higher Education Act, Every Student Succeeds Act, Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, Child Care and Development Block Grants and Carl D. Perkins CTE Act are all overdue or expiring this year. As Congress considers key legislation, the commission’s recommendations will help shape the policies that prepare our workforce for future success. Learn more about this critical effort and meet the commissioners shaping the future of our workforce. https://bit.ly/3ZWdPES

CEPR Faculty Director Thomas Kane is joining the Bipartisan Policy Center Commission on the American Workforce, a bold initiative that will meet throughout 2025 to develop a national, bipartisan strategy to strengthen the workforce and expand economic opportunity. The commission’s recommendations will guide Congress as it considers overdue reauthorizations of key legislation, including the Higher Education Act, the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, and the Child Care and Development Block Grant. Learn more below ⬇️

We're excited to see the Bipartisan Policy Center (BPC) launch the Commission on the American Workforce, a vital initiative aimed at strengthening the future of education and work in the United States. With a focus on bridging skill gaps, promoting economic mobility, and ensuring a resilient workforce, this commission represents a bold step toward addressing the evolving needs of employers, workers, and communities alike. 👏 Kudos to the BPC and the leaders they've coalesced to drive this effort for bipartisan solutions that put people and opportunity at the heart of progress. We look forward to seeing the innovative ideas, policy recommendations, and impactful change that will come from this important work. Read more below. 🔽

I've posted daily on LinkedIn for almost a year, but this week I've been silent. I've spent a lot of time listening. And thinking. Many are quick to post, comment, and express their rawest emotions... but we are not all that way. Many more of us need to sit with a thing, to process, to formulate, to figure out how and why we feel the way we do. And some of us also need to spend time understanding how and why those we disagree with feel the way they do. I'm still going through that process. Based on the election, social and political commentary I've read, by both major news outlets and everyday people, there is a vast gulf of misunderstanding between those who religiously wear their red or blue colors. I read this oped by David Brooks yesterday, and like Maria, it also struck a chord with me. I'm the daughter of an enlisted Marine, married into a working class family of creatives and laborers and small business owners. I'm also a privileged knowledge worker, college-educated, able to remote-access an ocean of opportunities and shift change at high levels of workforce and economic systems. I grew up in blue California, and now live in red Tennessee. My friends range from labor activists to library directors to homeschool moms to business owners to farm laborers. They include both passionate progressives and conservatives with convictions. As is natural leading up to an election, the strongest and loudest voices were those designed to sway the American people to one side or the other. Sometimes using the most vitrolic, terror-inducing, emotional rollercoasters of argument they could muster. Those voices are echoing in all spaces right now, some with even more hatred and fear than before. I'm hearing a lot of calls to action this week. Many doubling-down with vigor on a mission that feels threatened (yes, I'm with you), and others, like David, calling for an expanded understanding of inequality and some of the unseen challenges of rural America (I'm with you too). As for me --- I'm here just to say if you feel stuck in the middle, that's ok too. There is a very real and very important role for moderates and people who live in purple spaces to bridge the gap, to advocate for all, and to bring us closer to solutions that enable everyone in this nation to thrive. #election #economicopportunity #workforce

The latest YouGov poll for The Times presents a stark reality: a mere 10% of people believe schools adequately prepare students for life, while over 70% of parents feel that the education system places too little emphasis on preparing young people for work. As election manifestos are unveiled, we catch glimpses of party commitments, though details remain sparse. However, it’s evident that some parties better grasp the critical role of career education, guidance, work experience, and enrichment in breaking down systemic barriers and ensuring a fairer future for the next generation of leaders. ✅ Liberal Democrats: Strengthen career advice and employer links in schools and colleges, with new entitlements for enrichment for disadvantaged young people. ✅ Conservatives: Enhance career readiness through qualification reform and ABS. ✅ The Labour Party: Guarantee two weeks of work experience for every young person, improve career advice in schools and colleges, and provide a youth guarantee which includes arts, music, and sports, though it doesn’t explicitly mention career guidance. While these commitments are a positive step towards addressing this crucial aspect of education, the current provision remains underfunded and inconsistent. Schools lack specific funding and budgets to provide impartial and independent career education, information, advice, and guidance (CEIAG) or work experience. The next government has a pivotal opportunity to rectify this. By ensuring fair opportunities for all and driving economic growth, they can build on the expertise within the sector. We need more than just buzzwords; we need substantial investments and a genuine commitment to prepare our young people for the future. This is not just about policy—it's about empowering the next generation to succeed in life and their transition to employment.

What is the #ROI of #HigherEducation in #Utah? We have reasons to nod, keep moving forward, and reasons to pause, reassess and make needed changes. Read the report and explore the data at Strada Education Foundation

📰 Important insights from Connecticut Mirror on Connecticut's workforce challenges: While our state has thousands of job openings, many young people struggle to access these opportunities. As Shannon Marimón, Executive Director of ReadyCT, aptly states: "Ultimately the goal is to ensure that we're elevating all individuals to reach their fullest potential so that they can contribute effectively to the economy and we can be a state that is very proud of that fact — and we thrive because of it." 🗣️ We believe in the power of youth voices. Our recent study, "Elevating the Voices of Young People," highlights crucial perspectives for bridging this gap and building a stronger economic future for Connecticut. 🌟 📚 Dive deeper into these important issues: Report ➡️: https://lnkd.in/eFh3i4Xf Article ➡️: https://lnkd.in/gxU3ci7Y Let's work together to unlock the potential of Connecticut's youth! #CTWorkforce #YouthEmpowerment #EconomicGrowth

Continuing on with my post SXSW session discovery, today's highlight is "Young & in Gov: How the Next Generations Are Leading the Way." We often get wrapped up in the politics of it all, but there are so many people in government considered "career" workers who love the concept of public service. These young folk give me hope! https://lnkd.in/gaQTAw4x Hope you all can give it a listen.

This is a very important and insightful article, if hard to hear. At Education Design Lab, we have centered our mission on the New Majority — people who did not acquire a college degree right through from high school. That group represents over 80% of Americans. Another 15-20% find ways to earn a degree as adults, but that road is quite a bit bumpier when you have adult responsibilities. We believe there is a third way, paved by community colleges that offer job-aligned, skill-based credentials: they are more affordable, accessible, accelerated, stackable and relevant for the needs of the New Majority Learner, whether an adult or a high schooler for whom traditional college does not make sense. We are working with a hundred community colleges, and even some universities, on these new models. We are not alone. There is an emerging ecosystem that is focused on economic mobility and thriving that doesn’t require a degree. https://lnkd.in/ePy66bV9

One thing is clear after #Election2024: Millions of voters want change because the economy is not working for them. As a nation, we have work to do, and that means fixing our outdated education and workforce development systems so learners and workers face #NoDeadEnds on the road to good jobs and economic advancement. In a brand new memo to the incoming presidential administration, JFF breaks down our federal education and workforce #policy recommendations for President-Elect Donald Trump, Vice President-Elect JD Vance, and their transition team and presents a unifying, practical, bipartisan plan to eliminate the dead ends that millions of people in this country face every day at school, at work, and in their lives. The memo outlines four key federal #workforce, #education, and economic policy priorities and details concrete steps that the Trump Administration can take in their first 100 days in office to create more opportunities for workers and learners: 🏫 Prepare every young person for success. 💼 Invest in skills as the new currency for career advancement. 📚 Adapt postsecondary education to the needs of today’s learners and workers. 👷♂️ Realize the potential of untapped talent. By uniting around our shared values and fighting for the policy issues that matter most to learners and workers, we can build a future where everyone can thrive. Read the memo: https://hubs.la/Q02Xympd0 #federalpolicy #wkdev #HigherEd #K12 #educationpolicy #workforcepolicy