Program Model Ecosystem
Many credentialing and skill-based organizations do not actually lead to increased chances of employment due to a lack of cohesion with employers, a dearth of focus on the most at-need populations, and broad inconsistency in metrics and systems for tracking outcomes
How Might We…
Create a healthy market of breakthrough programs that seamlessly connect education and work and enable economic mobility?
The Challenge & Opportunity
As a result of the previously mentioned deficiencies, philanthropic capital does not flow to the right set of programs and the fragmented funding landscape inhibits the ability for early-stage programs to have sufficient resources to innovate and scale their model. Convening funders to share promising program models with demonstrated success, bringing in employers to share their perspective from the demand-side, and hearing from experts in the field can all help align funders on more effective program characteristics and elevate investment opportunities.
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There is also an opportunity in this space to address some of the longstanding racial inequities in job matriculation, educational attainment, and the broader non-profit ecosystem. As it stands:​
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Only 14% of Black adults and 11% of Hispanic adults hold bachelor's degrees, despite college becoming an increasingly popular postsecondary route
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On average, nonprofits led by people of color (POC) have 76% less unrestricted net assets and 26% less revenue
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Employers who want to hire a more diverse workforce face data constraints when verifying the efficacy of non-traditional job training and educational programs
This working group will help to bridge these issues by focusing on investing in POC-led nonprofits with an emphasis on scaling and replication, funding research into the highest-impact interventions and training programs for job seekers without bachelor's degrees, and building out data systems that allow employers to track and verify the aptitude of applicants coming from diverse and non-traditional educational and vocational backgrounds.
OPeN's Areas of Focus
This working group will develop a strategy around 5 overarching goals
SCALING
Invest in POC-led upskilling and credentialing models with strong employer partnerships
NARRATIVE CHANGE
Identify investments that can help change the narrative of entry level job qualifications and are reflective of multiple pathways to entering the workforce from high school
DATA SYSTEMS
Support the next iteration of quality assurance standards pilots in achieving greater scale and impact on state and national policies
INNOVATIVE MODELS
Identify investments that cater directly towards K-14 learners and that increase the visibility and viability of multiple different types of career and educational pathways
RESEARCH
Invest in research that identifies target populations with the most need and map successful efforts that target those populations
