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The Skills2Compete-Massachusetts vision is:
Every Massachusetts resident should have access to at least two years of education or training past high school so that they have the vocational credential, industry certification or Associates Degree needed to succeed in today’s economy. Residents should also have access to the basic skills, support and financial aid needed to pursue such education.
In partnership with National Skills Coalition, the Skills2Compete-Massachusetts campaign seeks to raise awareness of the need to train Massachusetts residents for middle-skill jobs, which require more than high school but less than a four-year degree. These jobs make up the largest portion of Massachusetts’ labor market. Prior to the recession, employers were experiencing difficulty hiring for middle skill positions. As we prepare for the recovery, we need initiatives and investments that increase post-secondary success to strengthen the skills of the Commonwealth’s workforce. Skills2Compete MA will make and advocate for policies that increase the number of Bay State residents who achieve at least two years of education or training past high school, to meet the demands of our employers.
SkillWorks: Partners for a Productive Workforce, a multiyear initiative to improve workforce development in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the lead partner with the Workforce Solutions Group and the National Skills Coalition on Skills2Compete MA.
This blog is mostly written by Loh-Sze Leung, director of SkillWorks, with occasional guest posts.
The Skills2Compete Massachusetts Business Partners consist of industry leaders who endorse the vision of ensuring every Massachusetts resident has at least two years of post-secondary education or training leading to a credential, certificate or degree that has meaning in the labor market.
The Business Partners group is chaired by Alan Macdonald, President Emeritus of the Massachusetts Business Roundtable and staffed by Loh-Sze Leung, Executive Director of SkillWorks. For information on how to join, please contact Loh-Sze at lohsze (dot) leung (at) tbf (dot) org.
Skills2Compete MA Business Partners (list in formation)
- Alan Macdonald, Chair, President Emeritus of Massachusetts Business Roundtable
- Ted Bauer, MassMEP
- John Heffernan, Massachusetts Biotechnology Council
- Susan Houston, Massachusetts Alliance for Economic Development
- Reinier Moquete, Latino STEM Alliance
- Dan O’Connell, Massachusetts Competitive Partnership
- Joseph Peters, Universal Plastics
- Angelo Sabatalo, Nypro
- Alicia Sasser, New England Public Policy Center at the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston
- Karen Schoch, Children’s Hospital Boston
- Michael Tamasi, AccuRounds
Skills2Compete MA Business Endorsers
- Associated Industries of Massachusetts
- Bella Luna Restaurant and the Milky Way Lounge
- Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
- Brigham and Women’s Hospital
- Children’s Hospital Boston
- Conservation Services Group
- Green Economy
- Massachusetts Competitive Partnership
- Massachusetts Hospital Association
- Massachusetts Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MassMEP)
- Massachusetts Workforce Investment Board Association
- New England Clean Energy Council
- Next Step Living
- Nypro
- Shire Pharmaceutical
- The Strategy Group
- Universal Plastics
Middle Skills Solutions Act: An Act establishing a middle skills council and the creation of regional skills academies in the Commonwealth (S2206) (as reported out in March 2012)
Testimony Templates for Middle-Skills Solutions Act Hearing on October 27, 2011
- CBO/Skills Training Provide Testimony Template
- Employer Testimony Template
- Participant Testimony Template
Middle Skills Solutions Act Revised FAQ Feb2012 (Updated February 2012)
Middle Skills Solutions Act Fact Sheet (March 2011)
Workforce Competitiveness Trust Fund Fact Sheet (February 2012)
Workforce Competitiveness Trust Fund Summary Outcomes Chart (February 2012)
Media Alert–Gubernatorial Forum on Jobs Set (September 2010)
Massachusetts’ Forgotten Middle Skill Jobs Report (July 2010)
Skills2Compete MA Recommendations (Updated September 2010)
Skills2Compete Massachusetts Press Releases (July 2010)
- Statewide Press Release
- Boston Press Release
- North Shore Press Release
- Worcester Press Release
- Springfield Press Release
Skills2Compete Audio Press Conference (July 2010)
Skills2Compete Poster (June 2010)
Save the Date!-Skills2Compete Massachusetts Gubernatorial Forum: Investing in Jobs and Opportunity
Do you believe every Massachusetts resident should have access to at least two years of education or training post-high school leading to a post-secondary degree or credential and the resources, support and financial aid needed to complete such training?
Please join the growing list of organizations and individuals below and endorse the Skills2Compete Massachusetts campaign to make this vision a reality.
Organizational Endorsements
- 1199SEIU Training and Upgrading Fund
- Action for Boston Community Development, Inc.
- Asian American Civic Association
- Associated Industries of Massachusetts
- Bella Luna Restaurant and the Milky Way Lounge
- Berkshire County Regional Employment Board
- BEST Corp./Hotel Training Center
- Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
- The Boston Foundation
- Boston Private Industry Council
- Brigham and Women’s Hospital
- Bunker Hill Community College
- Burlington Area Chamber of Commerce
- Career Center of Lowell
- CareerPoint One Stop Career Center
- Children’s Hospital Boston
- Community Action Agency of Somerville
- Conservation Services Group
- Creative Workplace Learning
- Crittenton Women’s Union
- DotWell
- English for New Bostonians
- Franklin Hampshire Regional Employment Board
- Greater New Bedford Workforce Investment Board, Inc.
- Green Economy
- International Institute of Boston
- JFY NetWorks
- Jobs for the Future
- JVS
- Massachusetts AFL-CIO
- Massachusetts Coalition for Adult Education
- Massachusetts Communities Action Network
- Massachusetts Community Colleges Executive Office
- Massachusetts Competitive Partnership
- Massachusetts Hospital Association
- Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition (MIRA)
- Massachusetts Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MassMEP)
- Massachusetts Workforce Alliance
- Massachusetts Workforce Investment Board Association
- Massachusetts Workforce Professionals Association
- Massachusetts YouthBuild Coalition
- Metro South/West REB, Inc.
- New England Clean Energy Council
- Next Step Living
- Northeastern University Center for Labor Market Studies
- Nypro
- Operation Bootstrap, Inc.,
- PHENOM-Public Higher Education Network
- Shire Pharmaceutical
- SkillWorks: Partners for a Productive Workforce
- Tailored For Success
- The Strategy Group
- UMass Amherst Labor Center
- UMass Dartmouth Labor Education Center
- United Way of Massachusetts Bay and Merrimack Valley
- Universal Plastics
- Webster Adult Basic Education
- WORK, Inc.
- The Work Place
- Workforce Central Career Center
- Workforce Results
- Workforce Solutions Group
- Year Up
- YMCA Training Inc.
Individual Endorsements
- Alan Macdonald, Massachusetts Business Roundtable
- Amy Zydanowicz, JVS
- Andrew Sum, Northeastern University Center for Labor Market Studies
- Barbara Emanuel, Berkshire Training and Employment Program
- Becky Donner
- Betty Blythe
- Betty Gooding, Nahant
- Catherine Bromberg, Massachusetts Hospital Association
- Carol Bates, Haverhill
- Carolyn Laughlin, Lowell
- Cecilia Oyediran, Boston Private Industry Council
- Celine Lasonde, The Coca Cola Company
- Cindy Mackenzie, Randolph
- Charlotte Lee, Springfield
- Connie Nelson, MA Worker Education Roundtable
- Daniel Sherman, The Boston Foundation
- Danielle Asselin, Melrose
- Dale Melcher, UMass Amherst Labor Center
- David Gadaire, CareerPoint OSCC
- Davo Jefferson, Year Up Boston
- Debby Wiesen, Arlington
- Dr. Andrew Sum, Northeastern University Center for Labor Studies
- Ed Marakovitz, Somerville
- Edward Tirrell, Lynn
- Elsa Bengel, YMCA Training, Inc.
- Emily Shuman, Empire Beauty School
- Gary Secondino, National Senior Network
- Geri Scott, Jobs for the Future
- Hari Narayanan, Division of Career Services
- Jill Griffin, The Boston Foundation
- Joan Abbot, BEST Corp
- John Ward
- Jose Soler, UMass Dartmouth Labor Ed Center
- Julianna Cumberbatch, Children’s Services of Roxbury
- Kathie Mainzer, Bella Luna Restaurant
- Laura Scirocco, Milford
- Lauren Ladd, Foxboro
- Liz Cinquino, Boston
- Loh-Sze Leung, SkillWorks
- Neil Sullivan, Boston PIC
- Marcia Davis, STRIVE Boston
- Margaret Fitgerald, Chestnut Hill
- Marianne Segool, North Central Career Center
- Marcia Davis, Strive Boston
- Mark Isenburg, Boston
- Mary Cronin, BEST Corp
- Mary Downey, BEST Corp
- Maureen Carney, Massachusetts AFL-CIO
- Melanoe Gelaznik, Berkshire Works
- Mona Cribb, City of Springfield Elder Affairs
- Patricia Maguire, SkillWorks
- Robert L. Zukowski, Central MASS Regional Employment Board
- Rosemarie Maguire, Somerville
- Ruthie Liberman, Crittenton Women’s Union
- Shailah Stewart, Brockton Public Schools
- Sherrie Saint-Amant, Melrose
- Smajl Cengic, Year Up
- Stephen Aalto, Weymouth
- Sue Parsons, Boston
- Sunny Schwartz, Boston
- Sylvia Dickens, Wayland
- Timothy Regele, The Boston Foundation
- William J. Allen, Boston College Graduate School of Social Work
- William Hartshorn, City of Springfield Elder Affairs
Gubernatorial Candidates Forum on Jobs and Opportunity – July 16, 2014, 6:00-7:30 pm, Roxbury Community College Media Arts Center, 1234 Columbus Ave, Roxbury Crossing
SkillWorks, the Workforce Solutions Group, the Job Training Alliance, English for New Bostonians, the Boston Private Industry Council, and the Boston Healthcare Careers Consortium are partnering to hold a gubernatorial candidates forum on jobs and opportunity. All candidates have been invited. The forum will be hosted by Roxbury Community College and moderated by Peter Howe of NECN.
Registration for the event is now open.
To stay up to date with the event, make sure to use #majobsforum and follow @SkillWorks_MA and @WSG_40 on Twitter.
Workforce Policy Breakfast Briefing–October 13, 2011, 8:00-9:30 am, Parkman House, 33 Beacon Street, Boston
Skills2Compete MA held a breakfast briefing for business partners with Senators Dan Wolf and Ken Donnelly on workforce policy issues facing the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. This breakfast was generously sponsored by the United Way of Massachusetts Bay and Merrimack Valley and the City of Boston, with support from SkillWorks and the Workforce Solutions Group.
Good Jobs America: Making Work Better for Everyone–October 17, 6-8 pm, Greenberg Traurig LLP, Garden Room, One International Place, Boston
SkillWorks and JVS are co-sponsored this conversation/book signing with Paul Osterman on his latest book, Good Jobs America: Making Work Better for Everyone. Good Jobshighlights two Boston-area workforce development organizations, Jewish Vocational Service and BEST Corp, for their work in the health care and hospitality industries.
Middle-Skills Solutions Act (SB 921/HB 2713) Hearing–October 27, 2011, 10:30 am, State House, Room A-1
The Middle-Skills Solutions Act will be heard by the Joint Committee on Labor and Workforce Development at 10:30 am on October 27, 2011 at the State House, Room A-1. We are gearing up for the hearing and organizing written and oral testimonies.
2011 Jobs and Workforce Summit
The 2011 Jobs and Workforce Summit was held on June 21, 2011 at the Publick House in Sturbridge featured workshops and speakers focused on increasing our understanding and our investment in workforce training and education. Speakers included Secretary Joanne Goldstein of the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development, Paul Reville, Commissioner of Higher Education, Donna Cupelo, New England Region director for Verizon, Dan Demaio-Newton of Monster, Ron Ferguson, Mimi Maduro state director of the Oregon Career Pathways Initiative, and others. Read more and download event materials here.
2010 Gubernatorial Candidates Forum
The Skills2Compete Gubernatorial Forum on Jobs and Opportunity was held on September 28, 2010 at Bunker Hill Community College. Over 600 people turned out to hear directly from the candidates on their plans for job creation and workforce training.
Couldn’t make it or want a re-cap? Click here.
2010 Gubernatorial Forum
For easier viewing, we’ve split the video from the forum into 9 segments. Links to photos and press coverage of the event follow the videos below.
Snow Cones, Paper Routes And Governors-To-Be (Curt Nickisch, WBUR-FM)
Rivals for Governor Speak on Jobs Plans (Chris Lovett, BNN)
Governor Candidates Spar in Two Forums (AP–Lowell Sun, WBUR, Worcester Telegram-Gazette)
Skills2Compete Forum Video (State House News Service–subscribers only)
Skills2Compete MA Hosts Gubernatorial Forum on Jobs, Skills (National Skills Coalition)
Candidates differ on Job Creation (Worcester Telegram-Gazette, October 6, 2010)
Event Photos (SkillWorks Picasa web album)
Best Practices and Innovative Models
- Children’s Hospital Boston (Boston, MA): Tuition Advancement Policy (National Fund for Workforce Solutions, August 2011)
- Closing the Financial Gap for Low-income Student Parents (CLASP Webinar, July 2011)
- Farther, Faster: Six Promising Programs Show How Career Pathway Bridges Help Basic Skills Students Earn Credentials that Matter (CLASP, August 2011)
- Middlesex Community College (Lowell, MA): Academy of Health Professions
- Chicago, IL: Community College and Nonprofit Partnership between Wilbur Wright College and Instituto del Progreso Latino–Initial Education and Employment Outcomes (Aspen Institute Report, February 2011)
- Kentucky Community & Technical College System: Career Pathways Initiative
- Kentucky Community & Technical College System: Developmental Education Pilots
- Measuring Business Impact: A Workforce Development Practitioner’s Guide(Commonewalth Corporation, Nov. 2011)
- Oregon Career Pathways Initiative : Higher Learning, Higher Earning
- Community College of Rhode Island: Career Pathways System
- Seattle: College for Working Adult Pilot Projects (hybrid, compressed, modular certificates and degrees)
- Virginia Community College System: Regional Career Pathways Systems Grants RFP
- Workforce Partnership Guidance Tool (National Fund for Workforce Solutions, a tool kit for starting an industry sector partnership)
Relevant Research/Reports
- Across the Great Divide: National Survey Reveals Great Divide Between Skills Workers Have and Skills Employers Require (Corporate Voices for Working Families, March 2011)
- An economy that works: Job creation and America’s future (McKinsey Global Institute, June 2011)
- Beyond Basic Skills: State Strategies to Connect Low-Skilled Students to an Employer-Valued Post-Secondary Education (Center for Law and Social Policy, March 2011)
- Giving Credit where Credit is Due: Creating a Competency-based Qualifications Framework for Post-Secondary Education and Training (Center for Law and Social Policy, April 2011)
- Driving Innovation from the Middle: Middle-Skill Jobs in the American South’s Economy (National Skills Coalition, August 2011)
- Improving Postsecondary Attainment Among Adults (National Governor’s Association, February 2011)
- New Path to Federal Student Aid for Those with No High School Diploma or GED (Center for Law and Social Policy, March 2011)
- Not Just Kid Stuff Anymore: The Economic Imperative for More Adults to Complete College (Center for Law and Social Policy, June 2011)
- Not Just Kid Stuff Anymore: The Economic Imperative for More Adults to Complete College-MA fact sheet (Center for Law and Social Policy, June 2011)
- Pathways out of Poverty for Vulnerable Californians: Policies that Prepare the Workforce for Middle-Skill Infrastructure Jobs (PolicyLink, October 2010)
- Pathways to Prosperity: Meeting the Challenge of Preparing Young Americans for the 21st Century (Harvard Graduate School of Education, February 2011)
- Accountability & Continuous Improvement in Remedial Education (Education Commission of the States, January 2011)
- Mismatch in the Labor Market: Measuring the Supply of and Demand for Skilled Labor in New England (New England Public Policy Center, added December 2010)
- Funding Career Pathways and Career Pathway Bridges (Center for Law and Social Policy, October 2010)
- Is the Middle of the U.S. Job Market Really Disappearing? (Center for American Progress, May 2010)
- Hot Jobs 2010 (Crittenton Women’s Union, added March 2010)
Resources for Students/Training Participants
- AARP Women’s Scholarship Opportunity for low-income women ages 40+ seeking new job skills, training and educational opportunities (AARP, added October 2011)
- Beyond Financial Aid: 2010 Guide to extra help for low-income adult students(Crittenton Women’s Union, added September 2010)
- Boston’s 2011 Opportunities Guide (City of Boston Jobs and Community Services, added July 2011)
- Career Coach: A free online career development and counseling tool (Women Employed, added October 2010)
- Massachusetts Clean Energy Careers Training & Education Directory(Massachusetts Clean Energy Center, January 2011)
- My Skills My Future online career exploration tool (U.S. Department of Labor, added August 2011)
Winter 2013
Boston Globe, “Unusual Alliance Backs Job-Training” (January 26, 2013)
Fall 2012
Boston Business Journal, “The Skills Gap: Myth or Reality?” (Dan Wolf and Loh-Sze Leung, September 28, 2012)
Winter 2012
BusinessWest, “Workforce Training is Good Business,” (Larry Meier, Peerless Precision, Jan. 31, 2012)
Lynnfield Patch/Boston.com, “Training Our Workers to Succeed–Today and Tomorrow,” (Sen. Katherine Clark, Jan. 30, 2012)
Fall 2011
Springfield Republican, “Middle-skill jobs will take us to the top,” (Rep. Cheryl Coakley-Rivera and Bill Ward, November 20, 2011)
Boston Globe, “Middle-skill jobs will revive the state,” (Sen. Ken Donnelly, November 1, 2011)
Boston Herald, “Climbing the Career Ladder,” (October 24, 2011)
Boston Business Journal, “Connecting people to jobs,” (Loh-Sze Leung and Inez Stewart, September 22, 2011)
Spring 2011
Boston Herald, “Training Necessary” (Letter to the Editor, June 17, 2011)
Winter 2011
Boston Business Journal, “Giving the state the skills to compete” (Alan Macdonald and Robert Haynes, March 10, 2011
The Boston Channel, “Millions of Jobs, Not Enough Workers to Fill Them” (March 9, 2011)
Fall 2010
Boston Business Journal, “College Cuts Cripple Workers,” (Letter to the Editor, September 20, 2010)
Boston Globe, “Cuts stall state’s engine,” (Letter to the Editor, September 19, 2010)
CommonWealth Magazine, “Overcoming tough times: We need to get serious about supporting working families in Massachusetts” (Fall 2010)
Mass High Tech, “Round-up: Talking about STEM” (September 29, 2010)
Past Press Coverage
Bloomberg Businessweek, “More jobs in Mass. require ‘middle skills’” (July 14, 2010)
Boston Globe, “Training needed for mid-level jobs, study says” (July 14, 2010)
Boston Herald, “Report: More jobs in Mass. require “middle skills“” (July 14, 2010)
Boston Herald, “Time, skill needed to fix economy”(August 8, 2010)
Boston Neighborhood Network, Interview with Chris Lovett on Middle Skill Jobs (July 14, 2010)
Forbes, “New Report: Largest Portion of Job Openings Projected for Massachusetts by 2016 are ‘Middle Skill’“(July 14, 2010)
Fox Business, “New Report: Largest Portion of Job Openings Projected for Massachusetts by 2016 are ‘Middle Skill‘” (July 14, 2010)
FreshNews, “New Report: Largest Portion of Job Openings Projected for Massachusetts by 2016 are ‘Middle Skill’“(July 14, 2010)
Herald Online, “New Report: Largest Portion of Job Openings Projected for Massachusetts by 2016 are ‘Middle Skill’“(July 14, 2010)
Lowell Sun, “The trend: More jobs take training. The advice: Don’t stop at high school“(July 19, 2010)
Mass High Tech, “Mass. needs to expand support of ‘middle-skill’ jobs“(August 18, 2010)
MSNBC, “Report: More Jobs in Mass. Require ‘Middle Skills’“(July 14, 2010)
MyNewsDesk, “National Skills Coalition: New Report: Largest Portion of Job Openings Projected for Massachusetts by 2016 Are ‘Middle-Skill’“(July 14, 2010)
NECN Business, “Report: More Mass. jobs will require ‘middle skills‘” (Air date, July 14, 2010)
NEHRA, “Study Shows Middle Skills Gap“(August 3, 2010)
Reliable Plant Magazine, “Report: Largest portion of job openings projected by 2016 are ‘middle-skill’“(July 14, 2010)
Springfield Republican, “Editorial: Middle-skill jobs offer opportunity for Western Massachusetts“(August 11, 2010)
Springfield Republican, “Study by National Skills Coalition, SkillWorks, and the Workforce Solutions Group shows shift toward ‘middle skill’ jobs“( August 9, 2010)
SunHerald.com, “New Report: Largest Portion of Job Openings Projected for Massachusetts by 2016 are ‘Middle Skill‘” (July 14, 2010)
The Examiner, “Report: Growing need in Mass for workers with more than high school, less than 4-year college“(July 14, 2010)
The Gardener News, “State’s Future is ‘middle skill’ jobs, report says“(July 15, 2010)
The Telegram, “Report: More Jobs In Mass. Require ‘Middle Skills’“(July 14, 2010)
Ventura County Star, “Report: More Jobs In Mass. Require ‘Middle Skills’“(July 14, 2010)
WBZ-TV, “More jobs in Mass. require ‘middle skills‘” (July 14, 2010)
Worcester Business Journal, “Ph.D.s Need Not Apply: Middle-Skill Jobs in Demand” (July 14, 2010)
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