English Language Learning Partnership Delivers $4.7M Impact to Colorado

With Election Day less than a week away, I am marking my calendar to take advantage of some of the post-Election Day reflection discussions. Here are a few conversations I plan to attend:

• What Will the 2024 Elections Mean for Education, hosted by the American Enterprise Institute ; Wednesday, November 6 at 8am MT. Register?here.
• Post-Election Breakdown: What the 2024 Results Could Mean for Higher Education, hosted by the American Council on Education ; Wednesday, November 6 at 12:30pm MT. Register?here.
• U.S. Election Aftermath: Certification, Transition, and What Comes Next, hosted by the University of Denver - Josef Korbel School of International Studies ; Friday, November 15 at 9am MT. Register?here.

???Going into next week’s election, I thought new survey insights from the?National Society of High School Scholars?(NSHSS)?revealed some generally optimistic takeaways from current high school students and recent graduates who will be voting – many for the first time:

• ??The majority of students surveyed (83%) plan to vote; those who are not registered noted they either dislike both candidates, or they are not registered.
• ??Almost all respondents (90%) believe there should be a cap on a presidential candidate’s age, with nearly 25% noting that 60 is too old.
• ??Young voters are optimistic. Over half (55%) feel positive about the election and over three-quarters (76%) believe their vote will make a difference.
• ???Students noted their top issues of concern: economy, healthcare, women’s rights, and the environment.

I hope the young person’s perspective will compel you to complete your ballot – Coloradans, you can still drop off your ballot AND you can register to vote on Election Day in the Centennial State. More details?here.

???And don’t forget – speaking of the democratic process,?Roadtrip Nation?is accepting applications from students who want to participate in their forthcoming Democracy Roadtrip. More details are?here; applications are due by November 3.

Reminder:?Jobs for the Future is accepting proposals for its Horizons Summit through?Friday, November 8. This year’s Horizons Summit will be held in New Orleans, June 10-11. More details on Horizons and how to submit your program proposal?here.

Spotlight on Colorado Education and Workforce

???I have?written?about the power of English language learning among non-native speakers as a way to unlock critical talent for our industries, communities and our state. This issue is even more top of mind for me after attending the?Human Potential Summit?a few weeks ago where the topic of untapped talent took center stage.

???This week,?EnGen, an AI-based platform that helps individuals gain English language and workforce skills, released results from its partnership with the?Colorado Office of New Americans. The results reveal the impact of Colorado's Virtual Career-Aligned English as a Second Language (VCESL) program – and the groundbreaking partnership results are powerful!

???Here are some of the most notable findings:

• The State of Colorado invested $700,000 in EnGen licenses and realized a?$4.7 million impact?in the form of increased wages, local spending, job creation and tax revenues. Every dollar invested in EnGen yielded a $7 return for Colorado’s economy.
• These licenses were distributed to local employers, community colleges and statewide non-profit organizations supporting workforce shortages in key sectors of the state’s economy.
• 95% of EnGen users reported an improvement in their confidence in the workplace.
• 90% of workers noted that their job skills improved.
• 86% of EnGen users achieved a goal including a pay raise or a promotion at work.
• 88% of workers noted that they improved their digital literacy skills, which is a skill that is required for more than 9/10 jobs in the U.S.

???This first-of-its kind partnership?between the state of Colorado and EnGen allowed small and medium-sized employers, from food service to hospitality and healthcare, to receive instantaneous access to free language training for their workers and prospective hires.

The full impact report can be found?here?and you can read more about EnGen in a recent piece in?Forbes,?here.

Related: recent research from?New America?finds newly arrived English learners have a positive effect on peers’ outcomes. Read more about the Delaware case study?here.

What We’re Reading (and Listening To…)

K-12 Education

• Seal of Climate Literacy: Many schools across Colorado will offer a new diploma endorsement to sustainability-minded students beginning this year. The Seal of Climate Literacy, established through?Colorado Senate Bill 24-014, is a new high school endorsement that connects educational knowledge with the challenges and opportunities brought on by climate change. The new designation offers students a chance to?engage directly?with issues that impact their local environment and communities through coursework and hands-on learning.?[Boulder Valley School District]

Postsecondary Education

• Third-Party Servicers: The agency announced it will formally rescind the 2023 Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) on?Third-Party Servicers?by November 18, 2024. The 2023 DCL created a lot of?confusion?in the higher education sector, as it may have?causedmany online program managers (OPMs) and other education technology companies to be deemed third-party servicers.?[from our colleagues at McGuire Woods]
• Student Loan Hardship: ED also?unveiled?a set of proposed rules that would help an estimated 8 million borrowers experiencing financial hardship access student loan debt relief. The?proposed rules, which come out of ED’s?negotiated rulemaking?earlier this year, detail two new paths to debt relief. The proposed rules will be formally published in the weeks ahead; once published, the rules will undergo a 30-day public comment period. ED expects to finalize the regulations sometime next year, as long as the plan is not challenged in the courts.?[The New York Times; Higher Ed Dive; Forbes]
• Kids on Campus: A new initiative from the Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT) and the National Head Start Association (NHSA) –?Kids on Campus?– offers an inspiring and promising solution for the nearly 4 million parents who attend college in the U.S. The initiative aims to help community colleges better serve the needs of student parents, but also aims to expand access to quality early childhood education. A recent docu-series – “Raising Up” – aims to elevate the challenges faced by student parents, and the enterprising and responsive campuses that are supporting this cohort of learners. The film’s producer, Jaye Fenderson,?writes about?the new “legacy” of student parents and how these learners will shape the future of higher education.?[Diverse: Issues In Higher Education]

Future of Work

• Cybersecurity Jobs: the U.S. cybersecurity industry has only enough skilled workers to fill 83% of its jobs, according to a?recent report?from CyberSeek. This finding indicates a talent gap of at least 260,000 workers; experts point to upskilling, reskilling and apprenticeship as key strategies for the field going forward.?[HR Dive]
• Childcare Access for Working Parents: KPMG’s new ‘Parental Work Disruption Index’ is revealing how many working hours and wages are lost due to child care access issues. According to the index, 1.2 to 1.5 million workers (nearly 90% of whom are women) are impacted by a lack of child care access in a given month. Men are also increasingly affected by the child care crisis, doubling from 6% to 12% since 2000. This translates to 9-26 million lost working hours, lower pay for affected workers, and eventually burnout.?[Forbes]

Upcoming Events and Opportunities

• Willow Education:?Purposeful Pathways: Where Is College Still Worth It?, November 7, 11am-12:45pm MT (Virtual)
• Competency-Based Education Network:?CBExchange 2024, November 11-14, Colorado Springs, CO
• NEW! New America:?Fundamentals of Youth Apprenticeship, November 18, 10-11am MT (Virtual)
• Complete College America (CCA):?All In: The 2024 CCA Annual Convening, November 18-20, Indianapolis, IN
• NEW! Jobs for the Future:?A Decade of Impact in Advancing Equity in Apprenticeships, November 21, 12-1pm MT (Virtual)
• American Enterprise Institute:?2025 Winter Honors Program, application open now until November 25
• Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce:?2025 Business Legislative Preview, January 7, 2025, 7-9:30am MT, Denver, CO
• NEW! Josef Korbel School of International Studies:?2024 Denver Democracy Summit, January 23-24, Denver, CO

Colleagues on the Move

• Nina Rees?has joined the Board of Directors of Building Hope, a national charter school facilities nonprofit organization. Nina is currently a Senior Fellow at the George W. Bush Institute and past president of the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools.
• Dr. Marguerite Roza?has joined the team at Whiteboard Advisors as a Senior Advisor. As Director of the Edunomics Lab at Georgetown University, Dr. Roza has played a major role in shaping education policy nationwide.
• Fort Lewis College?has officially launched a national search for its next president. The new president will follow Dr. Tom Stritikus, who served as FLC’s president for six years before stepping down in May to assume the presidency of Occidental College in California.
• Christine Heitz?has been appointed as the new CEO of Colorado Thrives, with responsibility for leading the organization’s new UpSkill 2030 initiative. She most recently served as a leader in McKinsey & Company’s education practice, supporting transformative strategies for education institutions and private sector companies.?
• NEW!?Constituent Services and Correspondence Coordinator?with the Office of Governor Jared Polis, Denver, CO
• NEW!?Deputy Director of Legislative Affairs?with the Office of Governor Jared Polis, Denver, CO
• NEW!?Senior Program and Impact Officer for Rural and Economic Opportunity?with the Office of Governor Jared Polis, Denver, CO
• NEW!?Vice President of Strategic Partnerships?with the Education Commission of the States, Washington, D.C.