News Archives

February 2010

Check out the new State Progress pages highlighting each of the Shifting Gears states' successes and ongoing efforts to improve the education and training of low-skilled adults. 

January 2010

Shifting Gears partners, Brandon Roberts and Derek Price, have recently published Educating Adult Workers: The Shifting Gears Approach to Systems Change.  This initiative-sponsored report describes how Shifting Gears is supporting and guiding state policy systems change through the use of proactive coaching, evaluative feedback, and tools such as a structured policy agenda and action plan and logic model.

December 2009

Shifting Gears State teams conducted a cross-site meeting on December 15-16 to discuss their plans to improve their state data alignment across systems. View the presentations and meeting materials for all sessions. 

The Shifting Gears initiative is featured in a new report from the Center for American Progress, Strong Students, Strong Workers: Models for Student Success through Workforce Development and Community College Partnerships. 

October 2009

The New York Times featured an article on how increased federal stimulus funds are helping community college across the country deal with booming enrollment numbers amid state budget shortfalls.

A new report released by The Workforce Alliance determined that Shifting Gears states will see a significant growth in middle-skill jobs. The report calls for increased investments in training programs for these "middle-skill" jobs, which are defined as requiring more than a high school diploma but less than a bachelor's degree.

September 2009

Will Low-Skilled Workers Benefit from Economic Recovery?  Shifting Gears partner Brandon Roberts and David Fischer discuss basic skills education and the importance of a postsecondary credential in the Huffington Post.

Under ARRA, Illinois is providing grants to eligible entities to continue to address the shortage of qualified workers in key sectors. The goal of the project is to accelerate training opportunities in high demand and high wage occupations through a variety of strategies, including bridge programs that combine basic skills with occupational training.

A new joint report by the Seattle Jobs Initiative and The Working Poor Families Project explores state career pathway programs in various stages of development. The detailed profiles of these efforts should serve as a useful resource for states who are trying to implement a career pathways framework of their own. (Report released May 2009)

Michigan’s efforts, supported by Shifting Gears, to provide access to postsecondary education for low-skilled adults is covered in the Detroit Free Press.

August 2009

The New York Times profiles a community college in Ohio which has made an exceptional effort to retrain adults for high-skill, high-growth jobs.

Indiana launches a grant program to help 9,000 students pay for occupational training leading to a postsecondary credential.

A new report by the Achieving the Dream initiative describes state strategies for improving outcomes of students enrolled in developmental education.

July 2009

Michigan plans to transform adult education to prepare adults for college and twenty-first century jobs.

May 2009

The Community College Research Center examines educational outcomes of students participating in I-BEST, a Washington State program that helps basic skills students enter and succeed in postsecondary education and training.

A new report highlights the characteristics of successful online learning programs for low-skill working adults.

March 2009

Wisconsin announces plans to help low-wage workers and individuals without a high school diploma gain basic skills and complete short-term training.

December 2008

The Working Poor Families Project publishes a policy brief that describes how states can increase the success of community college students who need to build basic academic skills.

Rhode Island encourages local programs to provide welfare recipients with a mix of basic skills instruction, occupational skills training, work readiness instruction and career exploration.

The New York Times profiles adult education programs that lead to postsecondary education and training.

Illinois releases extensive data on individuals making transitions into postsecondary programs.