STUDENT-CENTERED LEARNING

ANYTIME, ANYWHERE: NEW HANDBOOK ON STUDENT-CENTERED LEARNING

How can educators provide more customized support to engage all students and get them college and career-ready? The answer, according to a growing body of research, is student-centered learning approaches. Anytime, Anywhere: Student-Centered Learning for Schools and Teachers (Harvard Education Press), edited by Rebecca E. Wolfe, Adria Steinberg, and Nancy Hoffman, helps educators apply what we know about how the human brain learns, find ways to motivate and engage all students, and use digital tools to help them learn, assess, and express what they have learned in powerful new ways.

Anytime, Anywhere was produced by Students at the Center, which is funded by the Nellie Mae Education Foundation. Read more . . .

Return to Top

K-12 DROPOUT RECOVERY

HELPING THOUSANDS SAVES BILLIONS

Almost 7 million young Americans (age 16-24) are insufficiently attached to school or work. Based on conservative estimates, we can generate over $1 billion just by helping a mere 0.1 percent earn a high school credential and complete their first year of college through Back on Track Designs. What It Costs lays out the cost of setting up these GED- and diploma-granting schools and programs, and how districts, colleges, and community-based organizations can partner to sustain them. Read more . . .

Return to Top

EARLY COLLEGE

NATIONAL EARLY COLLEGE CONFERENCE: OCTOBER 29-30

The early college movement keeps on growing, with hundreds of schools nationwide—246 in JFF’s network alone. Tens of thousands of early college students are completing college coursework in high school, saving time and money toward earning college credentials—particularly minority and low-income youth. We invite educators, administrators, policymakers, and thought leaders to our Early College Conference on October 29-30 in Raleigh, NC, to learn how Early College Designs can prepare your students for college by leveraging proven classroom strategies, emerging technology, and partnerships with colleges and employers. 

Register by June 30 to pay our “Early Bird” rate. And contact us about presenting!

Return to Top

WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT

THE THIRD ANNUAL NATIONAL FUND MEETING: JUNE 11-13

Register for the 2013 annual meeting of the National Fund for Workforce Solutions. Join us June 11-13 in Atlanta, GA. Over 200 leaders in workforce development, education, business, and philanthropy will gather to learn how communities can pool resources and partners to meet employers’ labor demands and create new opportunities for workers. Hear from keynote speaker Connecticut Governor Dannel Malloy, chair of the National Governors Association’s Committee on Workforce and Education, and dozens more! Read more . . .

A TEAM EFFORT IN MILWAUKEE: THE EVOLUTION OF A WORKFORCE FUNDING ALLIANCE

When it comes to training workers for local in-demand jobs, workforce collaboratives are key to pooling and getting the most out of local resources. The Milwaukee Area Workforce Funding Alliance is a national example of how regions can start collaboratives of their own. Aligning for Impact tells the story of how the Alliance has grown since 2008 to include 29 partners, strategically aligned to leverage $16 million a year in education, job training, and placement services. Read more . . .

CONTEXTUALIZED LITERACY IN GREEN JOBS TRAINING

Millions of Americans need to gain basic literacy skills before they train for jobs that pay family-sustaining wages. From JFF’s GreenWays Initiative comes good news about ways to integrate literacy and numeracy skills into basic occupational training programs. A practice brief by JFF’s Alexandra Waugh shows how Philadelphia’s Green Job Readiness Partnership and Detroit’s Green Jobs Training Program use contextualized literacy instruction to quickly prepare low-skilled adults for middle-skill jobs. Read more . . .

Return to Top

COMMUNITY COLLEGE REFORM

STEPPING UP FOR COMMUNITY COLLEGES

Innovative colleges and state higher education systems are testing new approaches to improving persistence and degree attainment—particularly for low-income and underprepared students. The emerging consensus is that boutique programs don’t make a large-scale difference, but focusing on improving student placement; building structured, accelerated pathways to completion; and rewarding colleges for student success can, according to JFF’s Richard Kazis and Lara Couturier. In The Boston Foundation’s Stepping Up for Community Colleges, they examine how applying these lessons and proven student success models can help colleges across Massachusetts—and the nation—produce the graduates employers and communities need. Read more . . .

Return to Top

FEDERAL EDUCATION POLICY UPDATE

JFF’S YOUNG AND CLAGETT: OBAMA’S FY14 BUDGET GOOD FOR STUDENTS AND WORKERS

President Obama’s Fiscal Year 2014 budget recognizes the importance of engaging and accelerating students of all ages, according to JFF’s education and workforce policy directors Kathryn Young and Mary Gardner Clagett. “At a time when there is much negative news coming from Washington, this budget is actually quite uplifting,” they write. Both directors laud the “significant funds” marked for such innovations as dual enrollment programs, STEM networks, and a Universal Displaced Worker Program that could make a big difference for over one million unemployed workers. Read more . . .

Return to Top

JFF IN THE NEWS

May 7: JFF wrote a blog entry supporting the preservation of Pell Grant funding for students taking developmental education courses. The entry is in response to a Bloomberg View op-ed by Fordham Institute Executive Vice President Michael Petrilli. 

Apr. 24: Huffington Post Live hosted JFF Education Policy Director Kathryn Young for a discussion on the merits of early college. She was joined by Dayton Early College Principal Dave Taylor, Bard College President Leon Botstein, Bard graduate Kesi Augustine, and Lifebound President Carol J. Carter (VIDEO).

...and ON THE ROAD

May 21-22, National Association for Workforce Development Professionals’ Annual Meeting, Minneapolis, MN: 

Deborah Kobes is on two panels with our GreenWays partners. One is with the Working for America Institute and a community partner from Detroit about how union partnerships with community-based training providers help build stronger local workforces. The second, with partners from Philadelphia and Milwaukee, covers how Workforce Investment Boards and funding collaboratives can work with diverse workforce developers who have a wide range of expertise and missions. 

May 31, Massachusetts Library System’s “My College Freshman Is Your High School Senior,” Gardner/West Barnstable, MA: 

Rebecca E. Wolfe is on the keynote panel discussing how Students at the Centerresearch informs new ways to engage with standards, assessment, and applying emerging technologies to help more students succeed. This free event, a rare opportunity for librarians and teachers to come together, takes place at Mount Wachusett Community College and will be broadcast live via Cape Cod Community College. 

Jun. 11-13, National Fund for Workforce Solutions’ Annual Meeting, Atlanta, GA: 

Learn how workforce collaboratives nationwide are addressing employers’ workforce needs, creating opportunities for low-skilled adults, and attracting funds to sustain their programs. Meet and learn best practices from 300+ workforce, education, business, and philanthropic leaders. Register now!

SEE YOU ONLINE!

Talk to us and see what’s new in #edreform, #highered, and workforce development (#wkdev) on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and YouTube. Also, check out our blog.

Return to Top