Improving Employer Engagement in Bachelors Degree Pathways

A two-year initiative for select Talent Hubs, focused on redesigning existing partnership structures to better connect employers with faculty and institutions.

 

In partnership with Lumina Foundation, CivicLab is supporting Talent Hubs to redesign existing partnerships to better connect employers with faculty and institutions.  Starting in 2026, the two-year program will assist partnerships by redesigning processes and structures, connect teaching faculty with employers to modify coursework in real-time, and build the capacity of partnerships to speak the same language when it comes to developing the talent needed for today’s and tomorrow’s economy.

Through the program, Talent Hubs will:

  1. Redesign existing partnership structures to strengthen functional relationships between employers and education providers, creating effective feedback processes that allow for strong pathways and curriculum development aligned to employer demand and increased participation by employers in talent development;
  2. Apply labor market information; census-block demographic, economic, and education data; local administrative data; and, high-quality, primary qualitative data in system strategy development;
  3. Gain greater understanding of the community’s education and workforce systems, demands, and goals, resulting in actionable projects and targets for their region;
  4. Build stronger collaborative teams that continuously improve the learning system, emphasizing economic mobility; and
  5. Elevate their lessons learned and successes to a national platform.

 

Each partnership will receive:

  • In-depth capacity-building labs hosted in their own community
  • New data tools that unlock the power of place and voice
  • Training and customization of the Hire Forward Framework ™
  • Virtual community of practice sessions, connecting practitioners across the country with each other, experts, and CivicLab Fellows
  • Subgrant awards of $30,000 to support local meeting costs and incubate new strategies

 

Interested Talent Hubs must complete a Preliminary Review form by January 23, 2026.  More information on eligibility and how to apply is below.

Download the Request for Partnerships to Learn More

The chasm between employers and postsecondary education providers is growing in the United States. Despite the strong demand for upskilled and reskilled talent across several industries, collaboration between education providers and employers is notably low. Several studies have been authored in the past five years that underscores the challenge. These studies often report low self-scoring when rating partnerships between colleges, universities, and employers, and a disconnect between what postsecondary institutions provide and what employers need. CivicLab’s work with partnerships across the country also points to this issue, as several Talent Hubs have requested specific support in creating stronger partnerships between education providers and employers.

While every community and partnership is unique – and the reasons for this chasm are contextual to each place – a few common challenges have emerged:

Partnerships between postsecondary education providers and employers are overly reliant on labor market data. Working groups (e.g., advisory boards, industry councils, curriculum task forces) meant to design pathways aligned to labor market demand tend to prioritize secondary labor market data from sources like Lightcast. While this data is helpful in understanding macro conditions, its retroactive nature prevents partnerships from building a talent system for future economies. Further, most labor market data only captures a subset of employers that use third-party job seeking platforms (e.g., LinkedIn, Indeed), thereby hiding economic opportunity from pathway planners. Finally, labor market data does not include the voice, choice, and interest of the learner/worker, rendering those the system intends to serve voiceless in pathway design.

Most postsecondary education providers in our networks express frustration with their current partnership structures and processes as it pertains to pathway design. Almost all higher education institutions have various committees, industry councils, and advisory groups that are intended to incorporate employer voice into pathway and curriculum development. However, when asked if these partnership structures are working well – or if they are following an intentional process for their engagement with internal and external stakeholders – almost all of them report dissatisfaction. For example, in serving a recent cohort of community colleges to improve external stakeholder engagement, CivicLab received requests from 14 of the 16 participating community colleges for help in redesigning existing collaborative structures. After conducting an initial assessment, we found that none of the colleges were following a process to guide their advisory work, and almost none had an intentionally designed collaborative structure (e.g., clear purpose, role clarity, facilitator, shared measurement system) to hold the work together. In short, by leaving their process and structure to chance, they were leaving their outcomes to chance.

Many employers, especially local and regional employers with fewer than 5,000 employees, are unsure how to work with postsecondary education partners and haven’t examined how their hiring systems influence the talent system. In many communities across the country, employers are still treated as consumers of talent, playing an external role in the talent development and connection system. As such, many employers are unsure how to participate in conversations focused on pathway development and curriculum design, let alone take steps to provide internships, apprenticeships, guaranteed interviews, and employer-supported learning. Further, many employers are still relying on the “spot market” to fill their talent needs, placing locally developed talent (i.e., graduates from local education providers) through the same hiring channels as they would a candidate from outside the community.

 

To address this chasm, and to create proof-points among a group of exemplary Talent Hub partnerships, CivicLab has partnered with Lumina Foundation to create a two-year program that will strengthen university and business relationships.

This opportunity is only available to designated Talent Hubs.  Given the short program timeline, and in aligning with the portfolio-level priorities within Lumina Foundation where the funding is sourced, the following eligibility requirements have been put in place:

  1. The partnership must be a designated Talent Hub.  The Talent Hub will co-lead the development of the application with at least one partner university within its partnership.
  2. The partnership must focus on an existing partnerships structure (e.g., advisory boards, industry councils, curriculum task forces) that includes, at minimum, faculty/teaching faculty, university leadership, employers, and the Talent Hub organization.
    • Creating new partnership structures is not permitted in this program.  This must be an existing group.
    • The group must include employers directly.  Groups that represent employers (e.g., chambers, associations, industry councils, etc.) are welcome but insufficient.
    • The group must include faculty and/or teaching faculty that are currently providing coursework.
    • The group must have the ability to alter teaching practices and curricula that are currently being provided.  This program is not intended to build out new pathways that do not currently exist.  Rather, it is to improve the current state and rapidly create alignment towards credentials of value.
    • The group must have the ability to adjust and enhance employer practices, ranging from work-based learning, internships, and apprenticeships, to hiring practices.
    • We understand that Talent Hub convening organization staff may not have historically been engaged in these teams.  In those instances, the partnership must acknowledge that the convening organization may begin to participate as part of this program.
  3. The partnership must be focused on bachelors degrees.  While two-year degrees and other credentials can be part of the conversation, the primary focus of this program is on bachelors degrees.
    • Preference is given to those focusing on Bachelors of Arts degrees, not just Bachelors of Science or other applied fields.
  4. The partnership must have a state of readiness and willingness to change the ways they currently operate.  The group must acknowledge a need for redesign and express willingness to try new approaches.  The desire from change must come from within the group, not only from top-down leadership.

A two-step process will be used for application.  The first step is to submit a small set of materials and information to indicate your interest and fit for the program.  After review to ensure fit, those advanced for the second step will be asked to submit additional information and an assessment.

Step 1: Preliminary Review Form – Due January 23, 2026

Interested Talent Hubs should complete this preliminary review form. Completing the form requires the following information:

  1. Indicate the Talent Hub convening organization, university/universities, and employer(s) that would participate in the program.
  2. Indicate the partnership structure(s) (e.g., advisory boards, industry councils, curriculum task forces) that would participate in the program.
  3. Indicate the bachelors degrees that are within the scope of the partnership structures that would participate in the program.
  4. Briefly provide a rationale that describes the readiness to participate in this program.
  5. List three primary contact people that can provide further insight into readiness and the partnership applying for the program. The contacts should include 1) an university representative, 2) an employer representative, and 3) a representative of the Talent Hub.  The university and employer representatives should be active members of the partnership that would participate in the program.

Step 2: Selection – Due February 6, 2026

After reviewing submitted materials in step 1, eligible Talent Hubs will be advanced to step 2.  Talent Hubs will be asked to submit the following:

  1. Letters of commitment from, at minimum the university partner and the chair or lead of the partnership structure.  Additional letters of commitment from employers are also welcome.  The commitment letter should indicate that the partners agree to participate in the program and express a willingness to try new approaches to their existing partnership work.
  2. A full roster of the partnership structure (e.g., advisory boards, industry councils, curriculum task forces) that will participate in the program.
  3. Completion of a partnership health assessment provided by CivicLab. This assessment will be issued to a small number of individuals that are active in the partnership structure.  Data will be shared back with the applicant irrespective of selection.
  4. Additional information that may be required to add clarity to materials submitted in step 1.

Please direct questions to Dakota Pawlicki at dpawlicki@civiclab.org.