In the nation today, 4.6 million young adults ages 16 to 24 are out of school and unemployed. At the same time, there are roughly 7 million job openings, and employers are clamoring for skilled workers. What's wrong with this picture? These young people, commonly referred to as "opportunity youth," must overcome significant barriers to enter the labor market. But with the right kind of assistance, they can access the high-quality education and skills training that lead to good jobs. In today's rapidly changing economy, the costs of ignoring opportunity youth are too high. By 2020, 65 percent of jobs will require some form of postsecondary education and training. Today's opportunity youth can be the highly qualified workers of the future. In preparation for a new Congress and development of the FY2020 federal budget, Jobs for the Future (JFF) developed this brief to highlight how investments in opportunity youth yield critical economic gains and the impact of trends in federal funding over the past four decades.