Workforce Alignment Initiative
Connecting Higher Education to Careers
About the Workforce Alignment Initiative
What it is
The Commission has launched a two-year initiative, supported by Lumina Foundation, to help member colleges and universities close the gap between academic programs and workforce needs — and to build infrastructure that keeps pace with a changing economy.
More than 170 colleges and universities and six systems have signed on.
Workforce Initiative
Why it Matters
Workforce needs are well documented. Labor market data shows the gaps. Employers name the shortages.
What does not happen automatically is the translation of that data into action on campus — new programs, clearer career paths, better alignment between what students learn and what employers need. That translation requires infrastructure, collaboration, and a community of practice connecting institutions across types and state lines. Building it is what this initiative is for.
The Workforce Coordinator Network
The Coordinator Network is at the heart of the initiative.
Each participating institution designates a campus leader who connects their institution to the broader workforce ecosystem and represents it in a national community of practice.
Coordinators work alongside peers from community colleges, research universities, Hispanic-Serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities, and professional schools — analyzing workforce data, identifying program gaps, and developing strategies that work across institutional types.
This is not a compliance program. No accreditation requirements are tied to participation. It is a professional network for institutional leaders who want to get ahead of workforce change.
Alignment Across Our Membership
Workforce alignment looks different depending on an institution’s mission, student population, and region. This initiative is built to reflect that range, not flatten it. For some institutions it means a credential tied directly to local employer demand. For others it means strengthening the bridge between a broader course of study and the careers, vocations, or callings it prepares students for.
The Network does not apply a single model to very different institutions. It builds shared infrastructure — data, tools, and a community of practice — that each institution adapts to its own context. What unites participants is not a common definition of workforce readiness. It is a shared commitment to ensuring every student’s education connects to a meaningful next step, however that is defined on their campus.
Contact
Dr. Geoffrey Klein
Chief of Staff and Vice President
gklein@commissioncu.org
