This Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation report assesses the first round of HPOG grantees and reports the impacts of the HPOG model three years after a random controlled test. The report examines the impact that locally implemented HPOG programs have on program participants and their families, the extent of these impacts among selected subpopulations within each grantee programs, and whether employment following HPOG training follows an identified career pathway. HPOG 1.0 covers the first set of grant awards made in 2010 to 32 organizations, including five tribal organizations.

This Lumina Foundation brief offers a synthesis of third-party evaluations that measure and assess the impact of strategies used by two-year colleges to improve adult completion of non-degree credential programs. Strategies include the use of academic and non-academic student supports, the creation and implementation of career pathways, and the deployment of prior learning assessments. The brief also offers data pointing to the limited labor market opportunities for the more than half of Americans ages 25 to 64 who do not hold a postsecondary credential.

This Center for Law and Social Policy practice brief reviews the implementation of integrated education and training strategies that incorporate adult basic education with technical skills training. The brief highlights and summarizes survey findings from 265 stakeholders in 43 states, representing local education agencies, community- and faith-based organizations, higher education institutions, government agencies, employers, and other related non-profit workforce intermediaries.

This Urban Institute brief presents findings of the Accelerating Opportunity (AO) initiative evaluation as a model and practice of integrated career pathways for adult basic education and skills training. The evaluation covers ways that programs in Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, and Louisiana aimed to help adults with basic skills deficiencies earn occupational credentials. The evaluation identifies impacts on earnings and job opportunities for AO initiative participants.

This research to practice brief illustrates the Washington State Integrated Basic Education and Skills Training (I-BEST) program. I-BEST incorporates adult basic education (ABE) and English as a Second Language (ESL) courses with technical training aligned with state career pathways. This program is considered a best practice model that has been studied and replicated elsewhere to accelerate learning of ESL students and help them achieve economic self-sufficiency.

This Jobs for the Future report reviews the core features of career pathway programs and findings of career pathway evaluations involving entry and access to the labor market for adults lacking basic reading, writing, and math skills, as well as the integration of these basic skills with industry-specific technical skills at the post-secondary education level. This report presents evidence of how this approach can lead to career progression with improved educational and economic opportunities for participants in the 16 career pathways programs studied.

This RAND Corporation brief reviews the New Orleans’ Career Pathways Training Program and its three stages for opportunities within the advanced manufacturing, health care, and information technology industries. The three stages under review include recruitment, training, and coordination with employers. The brief identifies some of the program’s successes and challenges in the implementation of the initiative and provides recommendations for lessons learned in applying the program to other communities.

This National Skills Coalition report identifies the role of non-degree credentials as a means to expand economic and educational opportunities for underserved workers. The report offers a proposed set of quality assurance systems for these non-degree credentials, developed in consultation with 12 states, so that policy makers can support these training programs with public resources. Students can enroll in high-quality programs, and employers can validate the connection between the credential and industry needs.

This National Skills Coalition blogpost summarizes the Coalition’s work on non-degree credentials and how to define quality non-degree credentials that are valid, reliable, and transparent. The blogpost also explores how states could support industry partnerships, expand apprenticeships and work-based learning, and increase financial aid and non-tuition supportive services for persons seeking non-degree credentials.

This U.S. Department of Labor’s Competency Model Clearinghouse offers three new resources to support career pathway development. They include How to Crosswalk Competency Models for Curriculum Development: A Video Series Concept, a set of videos that illustrate how community colleges and employers use competency models to develop curricula; Customizing Competency Models Through Convening Guide, a set of how-to-guides to create partnerships among regional workforce partners to develop customized competency models that are based on regional labor market needs; and U.S. DOL Competency Model Peer Learning Group, a workforce development practitioner learning series on how to use and find resources within the agency’s Competency Model Clearinghouse.