Traditional approaches to education are being reimagined as the demand for workers with skills that match the evolving workplace continues to go unmet.

Critics say that higher education is expensive and inefficient when it comes to arming workers with those skills. An alternative approach has businesses, educators, and local leaders working together to create programs that can provide the certifications and skills needed to become successful in an industry and career.

A good example of this is the Fast Start Partnership, a program created by Dow Chemical, Delta College, and Great Lakes Bay Michigan Works in Michigan which trains job seekers looking for entry level positions at Dow Chemical.

This partnership was founded to answer the question: how can we work with employers to help them find the skilled talent they’re looking for in a specific community?

Delta College offers this 13-week Dow training program and Great Lakes Bay Michigan Works handles the recruiting by matching job seekers to the employers hiring criteria. It also funds the majority of the people who go through the program through scholarships.

By helping prepare individuals so they can meet the needs of regional employers, the people behind this partnership are further setting up workers, their families, and their community for success.