Build Cross-Sector Partnerships to Support Education and Workforce Needs
The Commission recommends that, to facilitate collaboration across sectors and current silos, state leaders establish and support bodies, at the statewide and regional levels, that convene stakeholders across K-12, postsecondary education, workforce, philanthropy, military, service-year programs, and community-based organizations and that include learners.
The numerous local, state, and federal agencies, boards, and other bodies that govern education, other youth development programs, service pathways, and workforce development have a shared interest in aligning their work to better serve everyone. To align goals across traditional silos, state policymakers and system leaders can facilitate and incentivize collaboration between education and workforce governing bodies. While convening across sectors is a necessary first step, simply meeting on a regular basis will not improve learner outcomes. To be successful, state leaders must set a vision for cross-sector collaboration that includes shared goals and necessary resources, such as time, funding, and information.
Community college administrator in California
“Funding for partnerships is not a high priority. [There used to be] a monthly College Promise gathering, and they brought people from K-12 and the community college and the university, and that was amazing...But instead, since then, the grants that we’ve gotten are Title V, to make a science resource center; or everything’s niche and local ... therefore, we’re missing out on each other’s expertise.”
Related recommendation:
Break Down Silos and Build Shared Responsibility Across Education and Workforce Systems
Based in Wisconsin, WRTP | BIG STEP is recognized as a national model of cross-sector partnership, bringing together employers, labor unions, government agencies, and community-based organizations to align training with regional industry demand and connect individuals to family-sustaining careers. The organization delivers sector-based training through employer-informed curricula and apprenticeship pathways that respond to evolving labor market needs and skills shortages.
Central to success is its role as a workforce intermediary, coordinating across stakeholders to identify workforce needs, design training programs, and facilitate job placement while balancing the interests of workers and industry. By serving as a convening and translating entity, WRTP | BIG STEP reduces fragmentation across systems and enables more efficient talent development, contributing to both economic mobility for participants and competitiveness for regional industries.
Related Promising Practices
Connecticut Capital Workforce Partners
Capital Workforce Partners is a regional workforce development board that funds intermediaries to develop education-to-career programs.
- CT
- Break Down Silos
- Early Exploration
- Employers
- Policymakers
The Attainment Network
The Attainment Network is a nonprofit intermediary that convenes education and workforce partners in Colorado to support learners’ economic mobility.
- CO
- Break Down Silos
- Early Exploration
- Employers
- Higher Education Leaders
- K-12 Educators & Leaders
- Philanthropists
Southwest Florida FutureMakers Coalition
FutureMakers is the education and workforce initiative of Collaboratory, Southwest Florida’s leading community foundation.
- FL
- Break Down Silos
- Data Systems
- Employers
- Higher Education Leaders
- K-12 Educators & Leaders
- Philanthropists
Related Recommendations
