Rural America has long been perceived as "left behind" by policies that leave it struggling while benefiting bustling urban cities and suburbs. That narrative holds some truth: rural America has a declining population, along with lower educational attainment and lower workforce participation than urban America. But while rural America…

The current school reform movement has been plagued by three false assumptions. The first of these postulates that more academic requirements will strengthen the minds of students, improve their reasoning, prepare them for a rapidly changing economy, and make the U.S. economy more competitive. Although it is true that the workers of the future…

A research study, based on a survey of the literature, sought to: (1) analyze recent economic, technological, and sociological trends in Japan; (2) analyze how those trends have or have not had an impact on Japan's historical and currently famous approach to the management of its human resources; and (3) based on findings, present arguments for or…

A study examined the degree of reindustrialization underway and planned for in the greater Toledo area located in northwestern Ohio. It also analyzed the perception of manpower requirements needed to support such a reindustrialization effort. During the study, researchers reviewed literature dealing with current employment patterns and labor needs…

During the last decade, the manufacture of commodities has become increasingly simple, and as a result, has increasingly been exported from the United States to low-wage regions of the world. On the other hand, the U.S. economy has become increasingly service oriented, with service-sector jobs growing rapidly while manufacturing jobs decline. In…

The role of small business and entrepreneurship in today's economy is well documented. Entrepreneurship and small business ownership are an especially attractive option for women. Women have been seeking an escape from traditional, low-paying, dead-end jobs by choosing entrepreneurship at a rate five times faster than that of men. Women now own…

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…

In order to maintain and improve its residents' standard of living, Colorado must develop an internationally competitive work force for the 21st century. To achieve this goal, a fully integrated, improved, and updated work force development system must be established. This system will require an ongoing partnership among business and industry,…

This volume is the first of three reporting research that is intended to help postsecondary occupational education deans and directors become able to plan more strategically for using new instructional technologies to meet emerging needs. This document begins with a packet of guidesheets made up of materials from all three volumes. Relevant…

According to March 1991 Current Population Survey data, 64 percent of young workers in Pennsylvania aged 15-39 have no more than a high school education. Pennsylvania is at some competitive economic development disadvantage compared to the national young adult labor force because of its lower share of more educated young workers with advanced…

The need for a national policy for the development and use of human resources is evident. One part of the human resource development issue centers around the needs of adult workers who are unemployed or threatended with unemployment because of structural changes in the labor market. The issue of retraining adult workers was examined in detail in…

This overview of 34 mostly rural counties in southern Illinois is intended to: (1) provide a mid-1980s look at Southern Illinois and its potentials for those who want to learn about the region; (2) provide the basis for further study of the region's many aspects and potentials; and (3) provide basic overview material for those studying particular…

The Area Consortium on Training initiated the Training for Technology Project to fill industry needs for skilled personnel and job needs for economically disadvantaged persons. Major accomplishments included establishment of a training team for economic development and for development of training programs; contacting of more than 100 employers;…

This book outlines why the skills of the U.S. workforce have become the single most important factor in the competitiveness, not only of individual companies, but of national economies. It documents the widening gap between the need for highly skilled workers and their availability, and it points out the chilling consequences that may occur if the…

This paper briefly examines three publications that lay out strategies for U.S. economic competitiveness in the future: the U.S. Department of Education's report "America 2000: An Education Strategy," in response to the President's message of April 1991; the report of the Secretary of Labor's Commission on Achieving Necessary Skills…