Overview

Human capital development—or people’s ability to acquire skills and knowledge through education and training—advances workers’ economic opportunity and strengthens employers and the economy. Yet the complex landscape of skills and training is fragmented across institutions of higher education, public and private providers, and other credentialing programs. More importantly, human capital development alone does not lead to greater economic mobility, as many workers continue to face barriers to reaching their full potential in the labor market.

Working Knowledge

Skills and training May 24, 2023
Article

Can Community Colleges Rebuild the Middle Class?

WorkRise Leadership Board Member Eduardo Padrón makes the case that community college should be free to all and that lifelong learning is here to stay.

Elizabeth Vivirito

May 24, 2023
Skills and training August 10, 2023
Changemaker Q&A

Corporate Pledges, Racial Equity, and the Future of Workers: A Q&A with Dane Linn

It was an unlikely moment for a surge in corporate leadership. In late spring 2020, the death toll across the United States was nearing 100,000 because of the…

Elizabeth Vivirito

August 10, 2023
Skills and training June 21, 2023
Research Summary

Community Colleges Have a Wealth of Strategies to Support Black, Latinx, and Indigenous Student Success

Recent research from the Community College Research Center highlights stackable credentials, social supports to address nonacademic challenges, and culturally relevant curricula as three strategies for supporting adult learners from marginalized communities.

Madeleine Sirois

June 21, 2023
Skills and training June 28, 2023
Research Summary

People Experiencing Short-Term Unemployment May Benefit the Most from Publicly Subsidized Training Programs

A recent evaluation of a publicly subsidized training program developed by the city of New Orleans and local employers finds that those who had been the unemployed for less than six months experienced the highest gains in earnings and employment.

Madeleine Sirois

June 28, 2023

Research

Skills and training Report Last updated on August 27, 2024

Supporting Youth Economic Mobility through Employment-Focused Strategies

WorkRise’s new landscape research report on youth economic mobility reviews the evidence of programs and practices that help young workers succeed and advance in the labor market.

Shayne Spaulding, Madeleine Sirois, Amanda Briggs

WorkRise Research

Last updated on August 27, 2024
Skills and training Executive Summary November 15, 2023

The Workforce Almanac: A System-Level View of US Workforce Training Providers

The Workforce Almanac, a first-of-its-kind effort to understand workforce training at a systemwide level is a an open-source directory of nearly 17,000 workforce training providers across the United States. This database offers the most comprehensive view to date of US workforce training providers and includes information such as provider names, locations, and types.

Grantee Research

November 15, 2023
Skills and training Executive Summary April 03, 2023

Navigating Public Job Training

Right now, more than 75,000 Eligible Training Provider (ETP) job programs are eligible for funding under America’s primary federal workforce development law, the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA). How well do these public investments prepare workers for high-quality jobs? In this analysis, authors combine training provider and program data from the US Department of Labor with performance records and occupational data to study the types of providers receiving WIOA funding and the kinds of jobs for which they offer training. The report also reviews websites for all 50 states to understand how easily potential job trainees can access information on these programs.

David Deming, Alexis Gable, Rachel Lipson, Arkādijs Zvaigzne

Grantee Research

April 03, 2023
Social determinants of work Report March 15, 2022

Implications of Providing Child Care Assistance to Parents In Education and Training

New WorkRise research uses microsimulation to model a hypothetical policy scenario where more parents in education and training were eligible for and received public child care subsidies.

Gina Adams, Linda Giannarelli, Nathan Sick, Kelly Dwyer

Grantee Research

March 15, 2022
Social determinants of work March 15, 2022

Expanding Child Care Subsidies to Parents in Education and Training

A fact sheet summarizes findings from a new WorkRise report that models a hypothetical policy scenario where more parents in education and training were eligible for and received public child care subsidies.

Gina Adams, Linda Giannarelli, Nathan Sick, Kelly Dwyer

Grantee Research

March 15, 2022


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