Community and technical colleges are known as "Democracy's colleges." They are grounded in the core American value that all people deserve the opportunity to move up in the world, regardless of where they are from, what obstacles they face and where they need to start. At a time when college education is the ticket to a middle-class…

Washington's community and technical colleges are a collective, powerful, unmatched resource for advancing prosperity through education. These 34 colleges not only connect with employers in the regions where they operate, but also with each other through common programs--like advanced manufacturing and allied health--that align with Washington's…

The author provides a perspective on progress in the Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) states since 1988, when SREB developed 12 goals to reach by the year 2000. Growth in population and school enrollment trends are highlighted--what was expected and the huge population and job growth that occurred. Looking ahead to 2010, projected job…

An Appalachian Regional Commission-sponsored conference on entrepreneurship stressed that the availability of investment capital is important to economic development in Appalachia and other rural areas, but it is not enough. A local social and business culture that embraces entrepreneurship and risk-taking must be developed through…

Examines changes in rural economies, and stresses the declining importance of resource-based industries (farming, forestry, mining) in most. Points to future growth in service sector, suggesting rural areas increase access to education, capital, telecommunications, and transportation to attract development. Contains graphs, table, and 20…

Superior pay and benefits associated with technology-intensive manufacturing offers promising job prospects for moderately skilled workers that may offset the negative impacts of declining unionization. Technology-intensive plants hire workers with more schooling, but also pay more at all levels of schooling. Promotion of technology-intensive…

The United States has never had a consistent, unified work force development system. Instead, because of citizens' preference for decentralized government, most efforts at work force development have been sporadic and localized. From the 1960s until the early 1990s, Congress enacted between 125 and 175 narrowly-focused categorical employment…

This document contains action plans for four states (Colorado, Indiana, Mississippi, and Missouri) involved in the Jobs for the Future program designed to enhance states' ability to handle economic change. The first section, "A Call to Action," discusses what Colorado's public and private sectors must consider doing to meet the…

Unless there is a fundamental change in business practices and the education system, millions of American university and high school graduates will be unable to find challenging, well-paying work. The dilemma is that there are many well-qualified graduates and too few jobs. This book explores a number of critical issues for today's schools and…

The U.S. economy is undergoing a transition that may rival the changes produced by the Industrial Revolution. The general directions are clear: an ever smaller share of the nation's work force is employed in the manufacturing sector; service sector industries are the source of most new jobs; and some "high tech" industries have had explosive…

Jobs for the Future undertook a program designed to enhance the ability of four states--Colorado, Indiana, Mississippi, and Missouri--to manage economic change is described in this report. An analysis of what was happening in the state economies, especially the kinds of jobs that were being created, was carried out. The research portions of the…

This report presents the views expressed at the Labor/Higher Education Council's National Meeting, the theme of which was "Education and Work: Redefinitions and New Strategies." Section 1 includes two keynote speeches: "Priorities for Economic Investment in People, Technology, and Public Works" (Ira Magaziner) and "Organized Labor's Stake in the…

This "how-to" manual provides information and specific strategies for vocational educators who want to become involved in the economic development/job creation process. It is especially designed for the novice business and industry liaison or coordinator. Section 1 outlines the economic development and job creation process and emphasizes…

This paper states that, although education has been linked historically to economic development, there is no clear evidence that this link is valid. It investigates under what conditions educational programs are likely to be effective and which are likely to shift resources without any net effects on employment, wage levels, productivity, or…

The planning and implementation of vocational training in Singapore (training primarily intended for school-leavers) is highly directed toward serving labor force development objectives. This paper explains the vocational training infrastructure (a national system, the conduct of which is vested in the Vocational and Industrial Training Board),…