Helping youth and adults succeed in today’s knowledge-based economy requires a new approach to meet workforce requirements, an approach that brings together educators, employers and workers to create ladders of opportunity. The Career Ladders Project for the California Community Colleges was created to help realize this goal.
Located in Oakland, California, the Career Ladders Project is a dynamic organization which consults and partners with community colleges throughout California to help implement educational and career pathways to ensure that disadvantaged youth and adults receive education and training that will meet the real demands of employers in the 21st century—and lead them to high-wage, high-demand careers.
To reach this goal, the Career Ladders Project provides strategic advice and technical assistance to community colleges and their workforce partners on building career pathways and bridge programs. We pursue policy initiatives and make research-based recommendations regarding career ladders from a systems approach. The Project also plays a role in a broad variety of privately and publicly funded programs and initiatives currently operating throughout California’s community colleges. As these initiatives mature, we work with state leadership and policy-makers to promote expansion and replication of successful projects as well as policy changes that support effective practices.