Economic Mobility Corporation

THE ECONOMIC MOBILITY CORPORATION (MOBILITY) IDENTIFIES, DEVELOPS AND EVALUATES PROGRAMS AND POLICIES THAT ENABLE DISADVANTAGED INDIVIDUALS TO ACQUIRE THE EDUCATION, SKILLS AND NETWORKS NEEDED TO SUCCEED IN THE LABOR MARKET.

PLEASE SEE STATEMENT OF PROGRAM SERVICES ON SCHEDULE OEVALUATION OF APPRENTI:LAUNCHED IN 2015, APPRENTI SEEKS TO CREATE NEW PATHWAYS TO MID-LEVEL TECH CAREERS FOR WORKERS FROM NONTRADITIONAL BACKGROUNDS, INCLUDING WOMEN, PEOPLE OF COLOR, VETERANS, AND PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES. THROUGH APPRENTI'S REGISTERED TECHNOLOGY APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAM, APPRENTICES RECEIVE THREE TO FIVE MONTHS OF OCCUPATIONAL SKILLS TRAINING ENDING IN AN INDUSTRY-RECOGNIZED CREDENTIAL, FOLLOWED BY A YEAR OF ON-THE-JOB TRAINING WITH AN EMPLOYER. APPRENTI WORKS WITH EMPLOYERS TO DEVELOP APPRENTICESHIP OPPORTUNITIES, THEN RECRUITS AND SCREENS CANDIDATES FOR THESE OPPORTUNITIES AND HELPS CANDIDATES PREPARE FOR EMPLOYER INTERVIEWS. ONCE SELECTED BY AN EMPLOYER, APPRENTI ORIENTS THE APPRENTICES, ENROLLS THEM IN TECHNICAL TRAINING ALIGNED TO THE EMPLOYERS' NEEDS, TRAINS THE MANAGERS WHO OVERSEE APPRENTICES AT THE WORKSITES, AND COMPLETES ALL REPORTING AND COMPLIANCE ACTIVITIES. WITH A GRANT FROM ARNOLD VENTURES, MOBILITY IS CONDUCTING A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL EVALUATION TO ASSESS PROGRAM IMPACTS DURING THE THREE YEARS AFTER STUDY ENROLLMENT. THE STUDY'S PRIMARY OUTCOME IS EARNINGS; SECONDARY OUTCOMES INCLUDE EMPLOYMENT, POSTSECONDARY CREDENTIAL ATTAINMENT, AND OTHER INDICATORS OF FINANCIAL WELL-BEING. THE PRIMARY SOURCE OF DATA ON OUTCOMES WILL BE A FOLLOW-UP SURVEY, SUPPLEMENTED BY ADMINISTRATIVE EARNINGS DATA WHERE AVAILABLE. STUDY ENROLLMENT BEGAN IN 2023 AND WILL CONTINUE INTO 2026. MOBILITY WILL PUBLISH A REPORT ON THE STUDY'S FINDINGS REGARDING PROGRAM IMPACTS, THE APPRENTI MODEL, AND ITS COSTS. THE EVALUATION OF APPRENTI WILL CONTRIBUTE TO THE EVIDENCE BASE ON THE EFFECTIVENESS OF SECTOR-BASED TRAINING AND APPRENTICESHIP IN INCREASING DISADVANTAGED WORKERS' ACCESS TO WELL-PAYING CAREERS.EVALUATION OF THE REPLICATION OF PER SCHOLAS:PER SCHOLAS WAS FOUNDED IN 1995 IN NEW YORK CITY'S SOUTH BRONX WITH A MISSION TO HELP LOW-INCOME INDIVIDUALS ACCESS WELL-PAYING CAREERS IN THE TECHNOLOGY FIELD. PER SCHOLAS' IT SUPPORT PROGRAM PROVIDES 15 WEEKS OF OCCUPATIONAL SKILLS TRAINING IN PREPARATION FOR PASSING THE COMPTIA A+ CERTIFICATION EXAM AS WELL AS PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT TRAINING, JOB PLACEMENT ASSISTANCE, AND TWO YEARS OF JOB RETENTION AND ADVANCEMENT SUPPORT. TWO RIGOROUS STUDIES OF PER SCHOLAS' PROGRAM IN THE SOUTH BRONX DEMONSTRATED THAT IT HAD LARGE, STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT IMPACTS ON PARTICIPANTS' EARNINGS. WITH GRANTS FROM ARNOLD VENTURES AND ASCENDIUM EDUCATION GROUP, MOBILITY IS CONDUCTING A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL EVALUATION TO ASSESS WHETHER THE EARNINGS IMPACTS FOUND IN THE EARLIER STUDIES CAN BE REPLICATED BEYOND THE BRONX IN PER SCHOLAS' NATIONAL CAPITAL REGION (NCR) AND COLUMBUS, OHIO LOCATIONS. STUDY ENROLLMENT BEGAN IN 2021 AND WILL CONTINUE THROUGH 2024. THE STUDY'S PRIMARY OUTCOME IS ANNUAL EARNINGS IN THE THIRD YEAR AFTER STUDY ENROLLMENT. THE STUDY WILL RELY ON STATE ADMINISTRATIVE DATA ON EARNINGS AND A FOLLOW-UP SURVEY, CONDUCTED THREE YEARS AFTER STUDY ENROLLMENT, THAT WILL PROVIDE A GREATER UNDERSTANDING OF HOW PER SCHOLAS AFFECTS PARTICIPANTS' EMPLOYMENT, TRAINING RECEIPT, ATTAINMENT OF INDUSTRY CREDENTIALS, AND FINANCIAL WELL-BEING. WE WILL PUBLISH MULTIPLE REPORTS ON THE STUDY'S FINDINGS REGARDING PROGRAM IMPACTS, THE PER SCHOLAS MODEL, VARIATIONS IN IMPLEMENTATION ACROSS THE SITES, AND PROGRAM COSTS. REPORTS WILL INCLUDE THE IMPLICATIONS OF THE FINDINGS FOR POLICY AND PROGRAMMING IN THE WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT FIELD.EVALUATION OF THE REPLICATION OF ASAP AT TWO WEST VIRGINIA COMMUNITY COLLEGES:ACCELERATED STUDY IN ASSOCIATE PROGRAMS (ASAP) PROVIDES COMPREHENSIVE ACADEMIC, PERSONAL, AND FINANCIAL SUPPORTS TO HELP STUDENTS EARN A POSTSECONDARY DEGREE OR CREDENTIAL WITHIN THREE YEARS. PRIOR EVALUATIONS OF CUNY ASAP AND ITS REPLICATION IN OHIO HAVE FOUND THAT THE PROGRAM HAD LARGE IMPACTS ON POSTSECONDARY GRADUATION RATES. THE WEST VIRGINIA ADAPTATION OF THE PROGRAM, ASCEND, TARGETS STUDENTS IN OCCUPATIONAL PROGRAMS THAT ARE ALIGNED WITH HIGHER-WAGE JOBS IN THE LOCAL ECONOMY, INCLUDING BOTH ASSOCIATE DEGREE AND CERTIFICATE PROGRAMS. WITH A GRANT FROM ARNOLD VENTURES, MOBILITY IS CONDUCTING A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL EVALUATION OF ASCEND TO ASSESS WHETHER THE LARGE IMPACTS FOUND IN EARLIER STUDIES CAN BE REPRODUCED. STUDY ENROLLMENT BEGAN IN 2021 AND WILL CONTINUE THROUGH EARLY 2024 AT THE TWO PARTICIPATING COLLEGES, BLUE RIDGE COMMUNITY AND TECHNICAL COLLEGE AND WEST VIRGINIA UNIVERSITY AT PARKERSBURG. THE STUDY'S PRIMARY OUTCOME IS DEGREE OR CREDENTIAL COMPLETION THREE YEARS AFTER STUDY ENROLLMENT, MEASURED WITH DATA FROM THE PARTICIPATING COLLEGES AND THE NATIONAL STUDENT CLEARINGHOUSE. THE STUDY WILL ALSO ASSESS THE PROGRAM'S COST EFFECTIVENESS. WE WILL PUBLISH AN INTERIM REPORT ON THE FINDINGS TWO YEARS AFTER STUDY ENROLLMENT AND A FINAL REPORT ON PROGRAM IMPACTS THREE YEARS AFTER STUDY ENROLLMENT. STRATEGIES FOR PROMOTING YOUNG ADULTS' ECONOMIC SUCCESS:MOBILITY IS ADVISING THE BALLMER GROUP ON DEVELOPING A STRATEGY TO PROMOTE THE ECONOMIC SUCCESS OF YOUNG ADULTS, PARTICULARLY THOSE WHO ARE DISCONNECTED FROM SCHOOL OR WORK. WE HAVE CONDUCTED INTERVIEWS WITH KEY STAKEHOLDERS AND RESEARCHED BOTH PROVEN AND PROMISING STRATEGIES. WE COMPLETED AN ANALYSIS OF THE PROSPECTS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE IN DETROIT AND IDENTIFIED SOME OF THE KEY CHALLENGES THEY FACE. WE DEVELOPED A SET OF RECOMMENDATIONS THAT, TOGETHER, COULD MOVE THE NEEDLE ON THE NUMBER OF YOUNG PEOPLE GRADUATING FROM HIGH SCHOOL, ENROLLING IN AND COMPLETING POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION AND TRAINING, AND MOVING INTO WELL-PAYING CAREERS.