How to Expand Pathways from High School to the Workforce

A new program by City Colleges of Chicago provides a model for what is possible when colleges are affordable, innovative, and nimble to students’ needs, says the Corporation’s Farhad Asghar

By Carnegie Corporation of New York July 19, 2022

Future of Learning & Work

High school graduates congratulate each other after receiving their diploma during the Savanna High School graduation ceremony in Anaheim, California (Credit: Leonard Ortiz at MediaNews Group/Orange County Register via Getty Images)

“Our nation must diversify and strengthen options available after high school that honor the needs of all students and communities,” said Farhad Asghar, program officer with Carnegie Corporation of New York’s Education program, during a panel discussion exploring how City Colleges of Chicago is helping residents advance in their jobs, start new careers, and harness rapidly changing workplace technologies. “Lifelong success in the United States is critically dependent on educational attainment,” Asghar continued. “We know that our postsecondary system as it exists was not designed to accommodate all learners, especially those who have been historically excluded and intentionally marginalized. This impacts earning potential and leads to vulnerability and economic disruptions.”

In summer 2021, City Colleges of Chicago launched a program called Future Ready, which leveraged federal recovery money to offer high-demand, short-term credentials at no cost to residents to help rebuild the region’s infrastructure, connect employers to local talent, narrow the digital divide, and contribute to a more equitable, inclusive economic recovery. The panel discussion, which focused on the success of the Future Ready program, was organized by the National Skills Coalition, a Corporation grantee that works to make higher education more feasible for working people. In addition to Asghar, panel participants were Andy Van Kleunen, chief executive officer of the National Skills Coalition; Juan Salgado, chancellor of City Colleges of Chicago; Julie Peller, executive director of Higher Learning Advocates; and Matt Summy, vice president of strategic planning for impact and inclusion at Comcast.

According to Family Voices: Building Pathways from Learning to Meaningful Work, a 2021 public opinion poll and related report by Gallup and Carnegie Corporation of New York, 63 percent of families want access to two and four year degrees, and half of them are interested in other possibilities. At the Corporation, Asghar manages the Pathways to Postsecondary Success portfolio that invests in reimagining pathways to educational and economic opportunity for high school graduates through initiatives to improve college access and completion as well as efforts to better align K–12 learning, higher education, and careers.

Chicago is leading the way in this work, showing cities and towns across the United States “proof of what is possible when colleges are affordable, innovative, and nimble to students’ needs,” said Asghar.

Check out the conversation Fireside Chat: Chancellor Juan Salgado.