To enhance state-level adult education and employment policy, in 2007 the Joyce Foundation began the Shifting Gears (SG) initiative to assist six states (Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio and Wisconsin) to integrate adult education, workforce development and postsecondary education policies and improve job opportunities for low-skilled…

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…

Based on author's M.S. thesis, Southern Illinois University, 1968.

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 is the report of the Illinois State Scholarship Commission, a governor-appointed body of seven persons, responsible for the administration of nine state authorized and funded aid programs for Illinois postsecondary students. The aid programs of the ISSC, combined with institutional and Federal aid and with the funds expected from parents and…

This curriculum guide offers a complete program for teaching pre-employment job-seeking skills that can be implemented in the secondary or postsecondary school. It contains 15 units on job search methods and job survival skills, divided into 40 lesson plans that teachers can use in the classroom. The material is intended to be integrated into…

This report presents existing workforce levels, training programs and career potentials and develops staffing level projections (1976-1982) based on available information for the State of Illinois. The study concerns itself with the environmental pollution control areas of air, noise, potable water, pesticides, radiation, solid waste, wastewater,…

Southern Illinois is well oriented to agricultural resources occupations, including conservation, utilization, and recreation. Interest measuring tests, surveys, and questionnaires were used to: (1) measure interest of sample junior and senior high school students, (2) identify agricultural related businesses and agencies, and (3) identify and…

In order to help the state of Illinois assess the extent to which it is providing access to educational opportunities that lead to successful transitions to college and the workforce, the IERC is undertaking a six-year longitudinal study following the 113,660 students in the Illinois high school class of 2002. This report, the second one in the…

Public two-year colleges, which enroll more than half of all Illinois undergraduates enrolled in the public sector are bearing the brunt of the shift from "mass" to "universal" higher education. But recent evidence raises serious questions about whether a dual track system in higher education is being established which…

The Illinois Workforce Preparation Action Plan was developed to set workforce preparation policy directions and improve coordination of programs and services in the state. This report provides information on the goals, objectives, activities, and implementation of the Plan. Following a preamble and list of the Action Plan Task Force membership,…

A postsecondary degree or credential is increasingly important in the U.S. economy, both for new entrants into the labor force and those already employed. Working adults who want to succeed in this economic climate are pursuing a college education in increasing numbers. Adult students have unique needs that differ from traditional-age, residential…

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…

This executive summary of a comprehensive study of health occupations education and employment in Illinois contains data on eighty-nine allied health and nursing occupations. Job definitions, educational requirements, licensing and certification, training programs, salary ranges, and job availability in these occupations are summarized in both…