News

Joe T. Wood, special projects coordinator at Hardeman County Schools in Tennessee, sees opportunity amid what he calls the "fourth industrial revolution." He spoke with ACT at the 2023 Workforce Summit about how skills-based hiring addresses changing workforce demands.

As Joe explains, skills-based hiring shifts the focus to employers, offering a more deliberate and transparent approach to assessing essential skills. He also gives insight into the need for a more flexible and responsive approach to career readiness to address the reality that “every kid’s going to have a career.”

Reflecting on obstacles and opportunities, Joe underscores the importance of rethinking traditional models to prepare students for diverse career pathways.

Hear all of Joe’s valuable insights in the video.

Braided funding and alignment of partnerships are key when creating sustainable systems and programs for your community.  Lyndsie Gibbs and Alex Lovrien from Metropolitan Community College in Omaha join us on Episode 46 of Ready for Work. The partnerships across this Work Ready Community grew a small, data-driven, proof of concept into a $10M venture that has eliminated financial barriers so individuals can access quality training, education, and gainful employment.  Listen in for best practices on braided funding, opportunities and obstacles, tips to get started, and lessons learned.

More than fifty students at Fulton’s GRB High School recently earned their ACT WorkKeys National Career Readiness Certificate, demonstrating the skills and knowledge essential for the modern workplace. This nationally recognized program is well-regarded in over 30 US states but is only beginning to take root in New York.

Join us in Episode 45 to discover a groundbreaking partnership between ACT and Opportunity at Work. Georgia Gillette, VP of Strategic Alliances at Opportunity at Work, shares insights on STARs (Skilled Through Alternative Routes) and the Tear the Paper Ceiling campaign. Discover the challenges faced by STARs, the impact of hiring misperceptions,

To ensure the needs of Mississippi’s workforce are being met, directors of the Mississippi Department of Education and Interim State Superintendent Raymond Morgigno participated in an advisory meeting last week with business and workforce development leaders in the Magnolia State. Discussions included ways to expand WorkKeys testing in high schools statewide.

Congratuations to ACT partner, Workbay, as runner-up in the U.S. Department of Education's Future Finder Challenge. The Workbay team will receive an additional $250,000 to support the continued development and deployment of their digital career navigation tools.

Workbay championed new career navigation tools integrated with WorkKeys skill benchmarks. The platforms offer job seekers a community-specific mobile app and web-based platform that connects them to local resources as well as videos, learning content, and job postings. Workbay links recruitment with skill-building programs to help learners identify and successfully pursue local careers of interest. Throughout the Future Finder Challenge, Workbay focused on expanding its platform to support adults currently and formerly incarcerated and worked with people who are incarcerated to test and refine its solution.

An effort by the Education and Industry Alliance 360 Partnership to improve the readiness of the Franklin County workforce has yielded certification as an ACT Work Ready Community. Partners in the initiative include Arkansas Tech University-Ozark Campus, the Ozark Chamber of Commerce, Ozark High School, the Western Arkansas Planning and Development District and elected officials in Franklin County.

In recent months, Jobs for the Future President Maria Flynn engaged in conversations with ACT about strategies for improving postsecondary education and workforce equity, alignment, and success. In a new ACT blog post, Maria answers questions about how certain populations are underserved by education and workforce systems, why career services and navigational supports need to be modernized, and the importance of intentionality and consistency in education and workforce success efforts. 

In episode 44 of Ready for Work, LeeSa Page, a senior advisor with the Manufacturing Skill Standards Council, discusses the importance of Manufacturing Day and Manufacturing Month in October. She highlights the role of manufacturing in the American economy and the need to inspire various groups to pursue careers in the industry. From the stage of the recent ACT Workforce Summit in Nashville, LeeSa emphasizes the need for partnerships and initiatives to tap into untapped talent pools for a diverse manufacturing workforce. The episode concludes by acknowledging successful programs that have positively impacted manufacturing employment.

Shelby County today announced that it has met all criteria to become a certified ACT® Work Ready Community. This achievement caps an ACT Work Ready Community Boot Camp process and begins a two-year growth and maintenance phase to retain certification. Shelby joins other counties in Southwest Tennessee and explosive growth anticipated for the region.