Pathways Research and DesignPathways elevates the voices of learners and workers who have been historically and systemically excluded from education and employment opportunities. We also collaborate with workforce and technology leaders as well as practitioners to ensure that programs, products, and promising practices are truly designed with learners in mind.
We elevate the voices of learners who have been historically and systemically excluded from education and employment opportunities. We also collaborate with learners, workers, workforce and technology leaders, and practitioners to ensure that programs, products, and promising practices are truly designed with learners in mind.
We are committed to centering the lived experiences of HSE learners. We value all collaborators, with a special focus on adult learners who drive our mission forward.
Through our inclusive and culturally responsive research methodologies, we empower learners to share their unique experiences, unlock their full potential, and shape the future of our workforce.
We facilitate the inclusive design of learning and employment innovations to ensure equity in access and utility for HSE learners.
“We understand that charting successful pathways to adult learning and economic mobility and sustainability begins well before individuals exit K-12 and enter post-secondary institutions or workforce training programs and opportunities. For systematically and historically excluded and marginalized populations, this requires the intentional development of partnerships that function in collaboration to address the needs of [learners].”
Jhacole LeGrand-Dunn, Senior Director of Pathways, Digital Promise
The Adult Learning Initiative was launched with the Beacon Project, bringing together a network of programs using technology in powerful ways to support adult education and workforce development.
We expanded the Beacon Project network and identified key challenges in adult learning, such as the digital skills gap and lack of coordination across collaborators.
We partnered with Facebook to develop social media marketing training and micro-credentials, working with 39 providers to train approximately 3,000 learners.
The Adult Learning initative launched Tapping Data for Frontline Talent Development to outline the use of data and collaboration across the adult learning ecosystem serving frontline workers.
We published Building Networks for Frontline Advancement to promote actionable strategies for a more collaborative, data-driven, and worker-centered adult learning ecosystem.
In collaboration with the Learner Variability Project, we released the Adult Learner Model, a research-based whole learner framework to support adult learning. We launched research projects related to the design and use of micro-credentials and Learning and Employment Records (LERs).
In partnership with the Barbara Bush Foundation, we released Promoting Digital Literacy for Adult Learners, a resource guide to support educators, tutors, and mentors working with adult learners on building digital literacy skills.
Digital Promise’s Pathways and Credentials team established the Learning and Employment Innovations initiative to build more equitable and inclusive learning and employment solutions that support life-sustaining careers.
We teamed up with frontline workers to understand the potential impact of Learning and Employment Records (LERs) and developed a set of worker-generated Inclusive Design Principles for LERs for technology developers, outlining key implications for future work.
The Learning and Employment Innovation initiative conducted interviews with learners and workers undergoing learning transitions, highlighting the importance of understanding and adapting to new challenges while progressing in one’s learning journey. We particularly focused on the potential benefits of learning and employment records in supporting individuals like Andy Bill, a self-employed 30-year-old who navigated a challenging transition after losing his job during the COVID-19 pandemic. “The Power of Learning and Employment Records (LERs): Andy’s Path to Success” highlights his journey and the potential benefits of LERs.
We collaborated with LER vendors, aiming to develop equitable and inclusive Learning and Employment Records by engaging with historically excluded learners and workers in co-design sessions to better understand their needs, challenges, and values regarding the onboarding of LER technologies. Findings were presented in our report “Onboarding and Education Design Principles for Learning and Employment Records.”
We released a landscape scan that synthesizes existing research and curates programs, services, and supports that effectively promote the success of Black learners and workers within technology career pathways.
Building on findings from our 2022 report, Micro-credentials for Social Mobility in Rural Postsecondary Communities: A Landscape Report, we began collaborating with Tennessee State University to examine the impact of upskilling and wage-increasing initiatives on rural ECE providers across the state of Tennessee.
The Adult Learning and Learning and Employment Innovations initiative merged to form Pathways Research and Design. This merger bridges research on adult learning that elevates the experiences and perspectives of learners and workers with inclusive design practices that inform solution development, ensuring we are guiding the development of people-driven, research-enabled products
“Design spaces often have little input for the products designed ‘for’ workers. To get a product that serves the needs of frontline workers, they have to be part of the conversation. Making the shift from being designed ‘for’ to being developed ‘with’—that is the way to get to more impactful products.”
Malliron L. Hodge, Founder, Education Innovation Consulting LLC
None of our work would be possible without partners. We believe in the power of collaboration to bring about lasting change for every adult in our workforce. We would be thrilled to collaborate with you!
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