Copy-of-Chike-Aguh-WIP

Education beyond high school: The new standard for the 21st Century

A conversation with Martha Kanter, executive director, College Promise
-

Education has long been seen as a critical pathway to prosperity. With COVID-19 hitting both the education system and the economy, how do we ensure young adults are able to access quality higher education opportunities, ones that will lead to good careers?

College Promise believes making education free for the first one or two years after high school for everyone is a step in the right direction. It’s been the mission for the nonprofit since before the pandemic, but College Promise is even more committed to seeing it come to fruition.

“It’s a pretty simple mission. We want to get people far better prepared and technically adept for the workforce of the 21st century,” explains Martha Kanter, executive director of College Promise and my guest in this episode of the Work in Progress podcast. “The idea is for business and education (to) partner together to create the kinds of pathways that students need, so they get real world experience and can actually harness the skills and training they need to be successful in their communities.”

Kanter says that education should be available for young adults just out of high school and older adults who now find themselves unemployed in this recession. “There’s all kinds of public and private partnerships that are happening. The Promise is a galvanizing tool. It brings partners to the table. The public private partnerships are really essential to keep students motivated and on track.”

Kanter goes into detail on how College Promise works, how the partnerships work, and some of the upskilling opportunities now available to anyone looking for postsecondary education. You can listen here, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Episode 141: Martha Kanter, Executive Director, College Promise
Host: Ramona Schindelheim, Editor-in-Chief, WorkingNation
Producer: Larry Buhl
Executive Producers: Joan Lynch, Melissa Panzer, and Ramona Schindelheim
Music: Composed by Lee Rosevere and licensed under CC by 4.0.

You can check out all the other podcasts at this link: Work in Progress podcasts