This toolkit is intended to help states create career pathways systems that integrate and expand partnerships between state human service agencies and postsecondary systems and institutions so that more people who want to train for a quality career can do so. Career pathways partnerships can help community colleges and human services work better…

This article examines the current literature and state legislation of statewide "free tuition" promise programs. The purpose of this paper was to analyze state free community college programs, legislation, scholarly literature, and state websites to understand program structures, funding sources, and student-eligibility requirements. The…

This resource was prepared in response to a request for information about the innovations and lessons learned as the result of the investments States have made in transforming their workforce using their Race to the Top -- Early Learning Challenge (RTT-ELC) grants. These strategies and accomplishments will be helpful to other States as they…

This Race to the Top - Early Learning Challenge (RTT-ELC) annual performance report for the year 2014 describes Oregon's accomplishments, lessons learned, challenges, and strategies Oregon will implement to address those challenges. The 2014 Annual Performance Report provides an overview of Oregon Race to the Top - Early Learning Challenge Grant…

To do a comprehensive assessment of Oregon's professional technical education and work force programs, project evaluators identified, obtained, and extracted relevant data from documents and other related materials that pertained to key program concerns. Fieldwork consisted of four major activities: interviews with key players, written surveys…

The following presentations are included in this document: "A Nation of Students" (Lamar Alexander); "Businesses Are Clamoring for Skilled Workers" (Betsy Brand); "We Need to Be Partners in Reality" (Roberts Jones); "The Value of a Working Parent as a Role Model" (JoAnne Barnhart); "Human Capital Is…

We review a plan that attracted the attention of public sector planners everywhere, Oregon's 1989 "Oregon Shines: An Economic Strategy for the Pacific Century". In particular, we focus on Oregon's aspirations for world-class workforce quality; a status that the state's planners argued would contribute to a host of other outcomes that…

This booklet contains descriptions of the approach of each state member of the Action Team on Lifelong Learning in meeting the challenge to prepare and upgrade the skills of the work force. Each one-page discussion is followed by the name, address, and telephone number of a contact person in the state. The reported approaches of 10 states…

This report is a primer on the multifaceted issues that state legislators are likely to confront under the rubric of human resource development. Chapter 1 proposes a philosophy: enabling every citizen to become a productive member of the 21st century economy is in a state's best interest both socially and fiscally. Chapter 2 focuses on the premium…

In their 2004 State of the State speeches, the nation's governors cited many issues competing for their attention and their states' resources, including health care, education, crime, and security (Nodine 2004). Among the most compelling challenges were those related to economic development and the ability of a state's workforce to meet the needs…

The organizational and working relationships between postsecondary education and economic development in selected states were investigated, with emphasis on identifying state-level coordinated programs in 12 geographically diverse states known to be active in linking education to economic development (Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Louisiana,…

The impact of one-stop career centers on the U.S. Employment Service (ES) program was examined through case studies of one-stop initiatives in the following states: Georgia; Ohio; California; Iowa; Oregon; Massachusetts; Texas; Utah; and Wisconsin. Of the nine case study states, only Georgia had not begun instituting a one-stop career center…

The extent of coordination and integration of welfare and work force development systems was examined in a study that involved site visits to 12 localities in 6 states. The following factors were found to promote coordination: a previous history of coordination; a strong local economy and low unemployment; access to technology; greater financial…

Surging demand for workers, growing income inequality, and passage of welfare reforms have made work force development one of the United States' key national concerns. Public/Private Ventures has been working with various states to design work force development strategies that seek to address the concerns of many work force development specialists…