Support for Project QUEST and Per Scholas Evaluations
Validation
This grant supports Economic Mobility Corporation in partnering with two well-established nonprofit sectoral training providers – Per Scholas and Project QUEST – to evaluate program impacts on low-income learners’ education and labor market outcomes and to identify key program factors associated with positive outcomes.
Oregon Statewide PEP Degree Program
Exploration
This grant supports Portland State University Foundation in developing transfer pathways for incarcerated learners in Oregon in partnership with two community colleges. In addition to offering a clear path to a bachelor’s degree, Portland State University and its partners will provide learners with wrap-around supports during incarceration and post-release.
Increasing Equity and Effectiveness in Work-based Learning and Career Preparation at Smaller Independent Liberal Arts Colleges and Universities
Validation
This grant supports the Council of Independent Colleges in partnering with 25 member institutions to develop and evaluate employer-driven work-based learning projects embedded in courses. It aims to eliminate barriers to professional opportunities for learners from low-income backgrounds and improve their post-graduation career outcomes.
Innovations in Proactive Communication and Support for STEM Success
Validation
This grant supports the Annenberg Institute for School Reform at Brown University in assessing the impact of a tech-enabled, academic support innovation targeting students’ STEM gateway course success and persistence at Georgia State University.
Investing in CodePath's Evidence of Effectiveness
Validation
This grant supports CodePath in establishing a body of rigorous evidence about the impacts of its programming at more than 70 colleges and universities, including technical internship placement, completion of degrees in computer science and labor market outcomes for learners from low-income backgrounds.
Strong Start to Finish - Accelerating Scaled Implementation
Scaling
This grant supports Education Commission of the States, through its Strong Start to Finish initiative, in accelerating the implementation of complex developmental education reforms at scale in up to eight state higher education systems.
Evaluations of Strategies to Improve Education and Workforce Success
Validation
This grant supports Dr. Ben Castleman’s University of Virginia research center in engaging in research-practice partnerships that will evaluate Merit America in Texas and Piedmont Virginia Community College’s gateway course reforms.
Building Career Pathways to Economic Mobility and Capacity Growth
Scaling
This grant supports Project QUEST in expanding its evidence-based career training and job coaching services to reach many more low-income individuals in the Bexar County, TX region. This grant leverages a major investment from the City of San Antonio and allows Project QUEST to scale sustainably.
Building a Statewide Data Dashboard for Postsecondary Education in Prison
Exploration
This grant supports the Coleridge Initiative in strengthening Arkansas’s data infrastructure to develop a data dashboard and conduct policy-relevant research on postsecondary education in prison. This project will serve as a model for other states on how to develop and use data to understand and improve postsecondary education in prison.
Implementing the Opportunity Accelerator Program to Expand Postsecondary Pathways for Rural Learners
Exploration
This grant supports Goodwill Industries International in expanding its Opportunity Accelerator framework to serve eight rural communities. Local Goodwill centers will develop new training pathways aligned to labor market needs in their regions, providing low-income young adults with training and support to attain jobs that pay a living wage.
