ERIC Number: ED661979
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2024-Aug
Pages: 19
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Career Pathways: How to Create Better Alternatives to College. Campaign for Working America
Taylor Maag
Progressive Policy Institute
In the 21st century, education has become America's most significant marker of class privilege. People with bachelor's and advanced degrees have mostly prospered, while wages for those with less education have fallen. This divergence in economic fortunes lies at the heart of our country's present economic and political discontents. Federal and state policies remain strongly biased in favor of subsidies to Americans who go to college, specifically those who acquire a 4-year degree. The nation's chronic underinvestment in work-related learning, experiences, and supports is not just unjust, it is bad economics. It squanders our most precious resource -- our workers -- and subtracts from U.S. productivity growth and competitiveness. American workers deserve better than a binary choice between an overpriced college degree program and a patchwork of public and private job training programs of uneven quality. Instead, U.S. leaders should equalize opportunity for workers, regardless of what path they choose. This means building a world-class education system that is inclusive of all options, not just college, to ensure greater upward mobility for American workers. This report is the first in a series of Campaign Blueprints detailing new ideas that can help Democrats reach across today's yawning "diploma divide" and reconnect with the working-class voters who have historically been the party's mainstay.
Descriptors: Career Pathways, Postsecondary Education, Apprenticeships, Funding Formulas, Work Experience Programs, Partnerships in Education, Public Agencies, Nonprofit Organizations, Private Agencies, Federal Aid, Grants, Labor Force Development, Personnel Selection, Wages, High School Students
Progressive Policy Institute. 600 Pennsylvania Avenue SE Suite 400, Washington, DC 20003. Tel: 202-547-0001; Fax: 202-544-5014; Web site: https://www.progressivepolicy.org/
Related Records: ED661978
Publication Type: Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Postsecondary Education; High Schools; Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: Progressive Policy Institute (PPI)
Identifiers - Laws, Policies, & Programs: Pell Grant Program
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A