Innovation Library
Articles, Reports, Videos, Monographs, and More
Latest Innovations
-
Tags: Corporate TrainingFebruary 2026For 60 years, Dallas College has been committed to preparing learners for workforce success in the...
-
Tags: AccessFebruary 2026In February 2023, Monroe Community College (MCC) was invited to join a cohort of nine other two-...
-
Tags: AccessFebruary 2026Across the nation, colleges continue to grapple with a steep rise in the number of students seeking...
-
Tags: PartnershipsJanuary 2026In an October 2024 issue of Member Spotlight, the author detailed how Delta College rethought...
Search Innovations
Economic Development
February
2026
Popular
February
2026
For 60 years, Dallas College has been committed to preparing learners for workforce success in the dynamic landscape of North Texas. As technology advances and industry transforms, the college is challenged to find the most effective ways to assess workforce needs and design programs that prepare students with both immediate and future-ready skills.
This work directly impacts students, local industries, and regional prosperity. Labor shortages and skills gaps are costly, and industry depends on a steady pipeline of talent that can contribute from day one while continuing to learn and grow...
Tags:
Graduating high school students across the nation are faced with deciding whether to continue their education or enter the workforce. Many seek higher education in order to improve career opportunities and gain economic prosperity and social mobility (Blackwell & Pinder, 2014). The College Board claims that the average annual income for individuals who have a baccalaureate degree is $53,976. The unemployment rate among these graduates is 4.7 percent, which is lower than the U.S. unemployment rate of 6.7 percent (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2014). While these statistics look promising, the...
Across the nation, colleges continue to grapple with a steep rise in the number of students seeking mental health support. Mental health challenges often manifest directly in academic performance—missed classes, difficulty concentrating, or decreased engagement—making support systems essential to learning (Center for Community College Student Engagement, 2024). Many community college learners face socioeconomic barriers, including difficulty accessing affordable behavioral health services (Lipson et al., 2021). These same challenges often intensify their mental health needs while...
February
2026
Community colleges were founded on the belief that education must respond to the needs of the communities they serve. Our institutions must be nimble, innovative, and directly connected to workforce and economic opportunities. Jackson College, serving Jackson, Hillsdale, and Lenawee counties, exemplifies this mission. By forging strong partnerships with industry, K-12 districts, state agencies, and regional leaders, the college has launched two transformational projects: the Medical Simulation Center and the Applied Technology Center. These strategic investments extend beyond campus. Jackson...
August
2020
Oakton Community College’s Cannabis Dispensary and Patient Care Specialist certificate program is the direct result of a single interaction between a senior Oakton administrator and an Oakton alumnus. The alumnus worked for a medical cannabis dispensary and expressed the need for educated patient care specialists who were able to interact with chronically ill patients—in other words, those with job skills that go beyond being a “weed enthusiast.”
Students and alumni can positively impact curriculum and academic programming as members of career advisory committees and by playing a role in...
Tags:
In December 2022, Harvard Business Review (HBR) published “The Partnership Imperative: Community Colleges, Employers, and America’s Chronic Skills Gap” (Fuller & Raman, 2022) based on surveys conducted from November 2020 to April 2021. Researchers from Harvard Business School’s Project on Managing the Future of Work gathered 347 responses from leaders in businesses and community colleges in the United States. The researchers identified three broad areas for partnership and stated, in summary:
The partnership between employers and community colleges is currently not fit for the purpose of...
