Click here to watch the livestream of National Briefing and click here to watch Mayoral Addresses from the six cities who participated in our Kresge-funded work.
Over the last two years, with generous support from the Kresge Foundation and in partnership with LinkedIn, six cities – Austin, Texas; Charleston, South Carolina; Corpus Christi, Texas; Houston; Jacksonville, Florida; and Nashville, Tennessee – have collaborated with NLC to generate innovative and scalable models using multi-sector partnerships, policy levers, and data for advancing equity and economic growth.
Earlier this month, this scope of work was celebrated with the National Briefing on Postsecondary and Workforce Success along with NLC President and Little Rock Mayor Mark Stodola and Dr. Jill Biden, Second Lady of the United States (2009-2017) and Co-Chair of the Biden Foundation.
While the event’s robust program included panel discussions from invited local leaders and highlighted remarks from Audrey M. Hutchinson, Director of Education and Expanded Learning in NLC’s Institute for Youth, Education, and Families, and Clifford M. Johnson, Executive Director of the Institute, not everyone had the chance attend the briefing.
Enter Twitter: In May’s installment in our monthly series, the Education and Expanded Learning team hosted a Twitterchat to continue and engage our networks in a discussion about our Kresge-funded work and thoughts to consider after the National Briefing. With 70 total engagements and potential reach of 9,803 impressions, the conversation was sustained by sharing thoughts and resources in a digital space.
Check out the engagement below!
Q1: What was your biggest takeaway from the National Briefing on Mayoral Leadership for Building Equitable Pathways to Postsecondary and Workforce Success? #NLCKresge2018
— National League of Cities (@leagueofcities) May 17, 2018
https://twitter.com/tma4s/status/997191411828252672
A1 Equity is the key to building a strong workforce in the face of rapid changes in the world of work. Youth of color are our future. #NLCKresge2018
— Sarah Treuhaft (@streuhaft) May 17, 2018
A1 Importance of mayoral leadership for bringing key stakeholders
to the table and incentivizing innovative practice @leagueofcities #NLCKresge2018 @DrBiden— Elizabeth Partoyan (@epartoyan) May 17, 2018
Q2: Based off of this body of work, what are ways cities can ensure that equity remains at the center of their efforts to strengthen pathways to postsecondary education and the workforce? #NLCKresge2018
— National League of Cities (@leagueofcities) May 17, 2018
https://twitter.com/tma4s/status/997193167119118336
A2 Give young people of color a seat at the table. Adopt equity goals and principles. Disaggregate data to understand needs & craft targeted solutions. #NLCKresge2018
— Sarah Treuhaft (@streuhaft) May 17, 2018
Q3: How do multi-sector partnerships play a role in building equitable pathways to postsecondary and workforce success in your city? #NLCKresge2018
— National League of Cities (@leagueofcities) May 17, 2018
A3. Education and job training are essential to building the next generation of workers. “Education lifts up our communities. It opens up possibilities of what someone’s life can become.” – @DrBiden at Building Equitable Pathways convening. #NLCKresge2018
— Biden Foundation (@bidenfoundation) May 17, 2018
A3. Community colleges are essential players in multi-sector partnerships — they provide paths-in to education and paths-out to the workforce #NLCKresge2018 @leagueofcities @bidenfoundation
— Elizabeth Partoyan (@epartoyan) May 17, 2018
A3 In the Bay Area, the @BAYEPORG network of employers, CBOs, youth, policymakers (@Leaders_Up @BayAreaCouncil @urbanstratoak @policylink @UWBayArea) places young men of color in good middle-skills jobs & advances supportive policies https://t.co/2DaoWY5uzi #NLCKresge2018
— Sarah Treuhaft (@streuhaft) May 17, 2018
https://twitter.com/tma4s/status/997195178497765382
Q4: What role can national and federal leaders play so they can continue to build these equitable pathways in their city? #NLCKresge2018
— National League of Cities (@leagueofcities) May 17, 2018
A4 Invest in apprenticeships and pre-apprenticeships, Promise Neighborhoods, #BabyBonds, #freecollege, colleges attended by students of color (e.g. #HBCUs). #NLCKresge2018
— Sarah Treuhaft (@streuhaft) May 17, 2018
https://twitter.com/tma4s/status/997197668714799104
Partnerships between local govt, higher ed & the workforce are crucial to equitable growth, as shown in the Building Equitable Pathways Initiative. We need affordable access to community college & job training to give everyone a fair shot at career success. #NLCKresge2018
— Biden Foundation (@bidenfoundation) May 17, 2018
Q4. Scale equity-based education-to-workforce pipeline innovation by disseminating successful practice from cities as exemplars #NLCKresge2018 @leagueofcities
— Elizabeth Partoyan (@epartoyan) May 17, 2018
Q5: From what you learned about the six cities and from your own work, what should cities do to ensure their efforts are sustainable as they build equitable pathways to postsecondary education and the workforce?#NLCKresge2018
— National League of Cities (@leagueofcities) May 17, 2018
https://twitter.com/tma4s/status/997200767600746499
A5 Stay focused on the equity goals you want to achieve & build partnerships that include youth of color, their advocates & their future employers to develop solutions that work #NLCKresge2018
— Sarah Treuhaft (@streuhaft) May 17, 2018
A5. Create a dedicated FTE position to collect and disaggregate community and industry data to inform municipal funding and policy decisions #NLCKresge2018 @leagueofcities
— Elizabeth Partoyan (@epartoyan) May 17, 2018
A5 make sure all are given opportunity for one livable wages & the tools including those at a disadvantage #nlckresge2018
— Lucretia A. Daniels (@LADanielsThe1) May 17, 2018
Q6: How can data and other tools equip cities to inform decision-making to ensure they are building equitable pathways to postsecondary and workforce success? #NLCKresge2018
— National League of Cities (@leagueofcities) May 17, 2018
https://twitter.com/tma4s/status/997202801364217858
A6 Cities can use data disaggregated by race/gender/etc. to understand how youth are doing to meet milestones & develop targeted interventions and supports along the life course https://t.co/hOPAlVAPMA #NLCKresge2018 pic.twitter.com/ThUrJP8Yqy
— Sarah Treuhaft (@streuhaft) May 17, 2018
A6 #2 Use data on demographic trends and the potential economic benefits of equity to tell the story about how & why equity matters to the future of your city https://t.co/RKCA738I3X #NLCKresge2018 pic.twitter.com/fJHKUNLFMH
— Sarah Treuhaft (@streuhaft) May 17, 2018
A6. These examples of cities building equitable pathways through partnerships should be shared throughout the country to promote growth. Two years of free community college for all hardworking students will improve their lives and strengthen our economy. #NLCKresge2018
— Biden Foundation (@bidenfoundation) May 17, 2018
A6. @LinkedIn created an #EconomicGraph for each of the six cities to help grow their local economies by shedding light on the skills employers need most, the workforce’s skills, and the gap between the two https://t.co/VtvveJMSYz #NLCKresge2018 @leagueofcities
— Elizabeth Partoyan (@epartoyan) May 17, 2018
About the Author: Indira Jimenez is the Associate of Communications in NLC’s Institute for Youth, Education, and Families.