Through our extensive work on the U.S. Department of Labor’s Career Pathways initiative, MSG has been supporting the understanding and creation of apprenticeship programs. These programs serve a critical role in the workforce development as a formalized and highly structured system of learning. It is a combination of on-the-job training and related classroom instruction in which workers learn the practical and theoretical aspects of a highly skilled occupation.

Our nation’s future is dependent upon an educated, skilled workforce. Improving the skills, knowledge, and credential attainment of American workers is critical to economic stability, growth and global competitiveness. Career pathways systems offer an effective approach to the development of a skilled workforce by increasing the number of workers in the U.S. who gain industry-recognized and academic credentials they need to work in many in-demand occupations. MSG supports Career Pathways in a variety of programs, and provides technical assistance to both adult education and workforce professionals.

The high school equivalency landscape, once dominated by the GED® test, is now in a state of flux. Many states have or are considering adopting alternative tests, and all tests are undergoing a process of realignment with national standards. MSG is currently developing a resource guide for workforce professionals to assist in navigating these changes.

College and career ready standards are linked broadly to the content standards movement in education and provide the foundation to improve curriculum, instruction, and assessment and better prepare students for college and the workplace. They also communicate core learning goals to teachers, parents, and students. MSG is currently developing a resource guide for workforce professionals to understand what type of information they need to know and use to thrive in standards-based environment.

MSG is committed to providing high quality resources to Career Technical Education (CTE) programs around the country. In addition to developing practitioner guides and communities of practice, the firm was recently engaged by the U.S. Department of Education to design an educator’s handbook for the CTE community on how to use, build, and share Open Educational Resources (OER).

The authorization of the Workforce Innovation Opportunity Act (WIOA) by the U.S. Congress in July 2014 ushered in a new approach to help to connect job seekers with education, training, and employment, along with many new responsibilities for federal, state, and local workforce and education agencies. MSG is helping Federal entities and grant recipients to navigate the changes through financial management training, professional development manuals, and the curation of useful tools and resources.

Labor market information (LMI) consists of employment statistics, job forecasts, wages, demographics, and other data gathered and made available for the exact purpose of assisting public and private organizations, researchers, and others to better understand today’s complex workforce. MSG has supported Department of Labor grant recipients through the development of virtual training tools and resources designed to instruct frontline workforce development staff on ways to leverage LMI to improve their programs.

Sector strategies build partnerships between employers, training providers, community organizations, and other key stakeholders around specific industries to address the workforce needs of employers and the training, employment, and career advancement needs of workers. MSG is currently supporting the Department of Labor in connecting this methodology to the broader Career Pathways movement.