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Fate of the American Dream

Strengthening Our Education and Skills Pipeline

In September 2005, top corporate, education, and workforce policymakers came together to address the failure to prepare the nation for the demands of the knowledge-based global economy of the 21st century. Through a dynamic, interactive forum, "town hall"-style gatherings, and addresses by prominent policymakers, 100 business and government leaders discussed how we can restore the “American dream.” Participants emerged with concrete strategies and resources to help provide more young people and adults with a better education and better careers.

 

The two-day event, called The Fate of the American Dream: A National Forum on Strengthening Our Education and Skills Pipeline, was hosted by Jobs for the Future and sponsored by a number of corporations also committed to improving the education and skills pipeline: Ford Motor Company Fund, Citigroup Foundation, Johnson & Johnson, Aetna, BellSouth, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Fidelity Investments, Manpower, and The McGraw-Hill Companies, with support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

 

The forum concluded with JFF’s release of Education and Skills for the 21st Century: An Agenda for Action. The Agenda looks at how the nation can take advantage of today’s best innovations and new models to rebuild and extend the education pipeline for tomorrow’s needs.

 

JFF’s Action Agenda specifies a number of concrete action steps—for employers, the education system, workforce development agencies, and state and national governments—in two major areas:

  1. Accelerate Achievement and Learning: Create and support rigorous, high-performing learning institutions that enable young people and adults to achieve at high levels and advance rapidly to earning postsecondary credentials.

  2. Promote Lifelong Learning:Create and finance a workforce-preparation system that yields the skilled workforces our businesses and communities need to thrive today and in the future, continuously advancing individual skills to meet the shifting demands of today’s workplaces.

Highlights of the forum included: 

  • Opening Address: William H. Donaldson, retiring SEC Chairman
  • Keynote Address: Patty Stonesifer, President of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

  • “Town Hall” Discussion with Corporate & Government Leaders: Facilitated by David Gergen, Harvard Public Service Professor of Leadership and asst. editor of US News & World Report. Panel included Rep. Howard P. "Buck" McKeon (R-CA), chair, House Subcommittee on 21st Century Competitiveness; Maria Tukeva, assistant superintendent, DC Public Schools, and principal, Bell Multicultural Senior High School; Darla Marburger, deputy assistant secretary for Policy, Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, U.S. Dept. of Education; Melanie Holmes, senior vice president, Manpower Inc.; and Guy Patton, President, Fidelity Outsourcing Services Inc.

    • Strengthening America’s Education and Skills Pipeline in the 21st Century. This Fred Friendly Seminar, moderated by Charles Ogletree of Harvard Law School, explored the tensions and trade-offs confronting employers in need of skilled workers and the education and workforce systems that must meet those needs. Panel included Stanley S. Litow, Vice President, IBM Corporation; Calvin Butts, President, SUNY College at Old Westbury, and Pastor, Abyssinian Baptist Church; David Wessel, Wall Street Journal; Jeanne Shaheen, former Governor of New Hampshire and Director, Institute of Politics, Harvard; Jerry Jasinowski, President, Manufacturing Institute, National Association of Manufacturers; and others.

    • Presentation of the Arthur H. White Making a Difference Awards, recognizing four extraordinary individuals from organizations in Los Angeles, CA, San Jose, CA, Hartford, CT, and Boston, MA who have improved the lives of people in their communities.

 

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