Prior research has classified strategies to facilitate adult learners' transitions to postsecondary opportunities into five broad categories: advising, General Educational Development-plus (GED-plus), English as a second language, career pathways, and college preparatory (Zafft, Kallenbach, & Spohn, 2006). This two-part study relied on…

We study employers' perceptions of postsecondary degrees using a field experiment. We randomly assign the sector and selectivity of institution to fictitious resumes and send them to real vacancy postings on a large online job board. According to our results, a bachelor's degree in business from a for-profit "online" institution is 22…

In the United States, approximately 65 percent of all jobs in 2020 will require some level of postsecondary education, and the demand will reach 70 percent in Illinois. This report seeks to inform public discourse on higher education by providing key performance indicators relevant to the goal of improving educational attainment for a healthy…

In the United States, approximately 65 percent of all jobs in 2020 will require some level of postsecondary education, and the demand will reach 68 percent in Iowa. This report seeks to inform public discourse on higher education by providing key performance indicators relevant to the goal of improving educational attainment for a healthy economy…

Governors are increasingly aware that the emerging economy will provide few well-paying jobs for workers who have not earned a postsecondary degree or a relevant workforce certificate. Fifty years ago, nearly 80 percent of all jobs required only a high school diploma or less and most paid a good wage. Fast-forward to data from 2013 and that number…

Shifting Gears was launched in 2007 by the Joyce Foundation, a Chicago-based organization focused on improving the quality of life of citizens residing in the Great Lakes region of the United States. The primary goal of Shifting Gears is to increase the number of low-skilled, low-income Midwestern adults who obtain college-level occupational…

In the United States, approximately 65 percent of all jobs in 2020 will require some level of postsecondary education, and the demand will reach 70 percent in Illinois. This report seeks to inform public discourse on higher education by providing key performance indicators relevant to the goal of improving educational attainment in Illinois.…

As the incomes of affluent and poor families have diverged over the past three decades, so too has the educational performance of their children. But how exactly do the forces of rising inequality affect the educational attainment and life chances of low-income children? In "Whither Opportunity?" a distinguished team of economists,…

This report describes and summarizes the purposes, activities, major findings, and recommendations of three coal-related study reports: (1) An Assessment of Employment and Training needs for Coal and Gasification Occupations, (2) A Manual for Competency-Matched Instructional Resources for Developing Coal Mining Curricula, and (3) The Preparation…

A study examined the relationship between defense contracting and vocational education in Illinois. During the study, researchers analyzed data from a variety of national and Illinois state data sources, including the Department of Defense, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Illinois Department of Commerce and Community Affairs, the Research and…

A pilot project profiled and compared the influence of the major environments of supply and demand, education, practice location and incentives, licensure and regulation, and planning and analysis on the health workforce in and among 10 states (California, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Iowa, Texas, Utah, Washington, West Virginia, and…

Activities, results, and recommendations of a 2-year effort to implement and test a model for vocational and occupational education planning in Illinois are described. An introductory section presents an overview of the rationale and plan for establishing a Regional Occupational Education Coordinating Council composed of representatives of the…

To facilitate curriculum improvement and career counseling in the field of agriculture, a survey was conducted to determine the marketability, or job placement, of the 1977 agriculture graduates from both two-year and four-year colleges in Illinois. A questionnaire was sent to the 1,832 graduates and was returned by 665. In response to a separate…

This report identifies aspects of Illinois' regionalization plan and includes 11 major topics: (1) education for employment policy; (2) definition of schooling; (3) articulation, coordination, cooperation; (4) sharing resources; (5) student services and access; (6) teacher involvement and inservice education; (7) labor market information,…

An economic development model was formulated to foster and strengthen commerce and industry retention and expansion in the state of Illinois. The main thrust of the model was on increasing productivity, decreasing business failures, encouraging entrepreneurship, and creating a favorable business climate through community support. To meet these…