The National Governors Association Center for Best Practices (NGA Center), in partnership with the Schultz Family Foundation and Annie E. Casey Foundation, recently brought together leaders from 24 states to Salt Lake City, Utah to showcase Governors’ leadership on embedding career development opportunities within service programs and to explore best practices for developing service-to-career pathways. The summit also highlighted innovations of the six states participating in the NGA Center’s Service-to-Career Pathways Policy Academy.
Utah Governor Spencer Cox, co-chair of the NGA Center’s Service-to-Career Pathways Advisory Board, kicked off the summit with a fireside chat centered on the power of service to improve local communities, state economies, and individuals’ mental health, civic engagement, and career development. Governor Cox highlighted his policy efforts to advance the culture of service in Utah, including the One Utah Service Fellowship, a state-funded model that provides paid service learning experiences for young Utahans, as well as employee service requirements for companies receiving state economic development incentives. The full discussion can be viewed below.
Governor Spencer Cox
UtahFollowing Governor Cox’s remarks, UServeUtah Executive Director Loggins Merrill joined Delaware Secretary of Labor LaKresha Moultrie to discuss their states’ efforts to engage young people in service programs as a bridge from K-12 education to employment or postsecondary education. The discussion also included insights from Vanessa Bennett, Director at Jobs for the Future’s Center for Apprenticeship & Work-Based Learning, on a new report that details how corps programs are currently integrating workforce development practices. The discussion highlighted strategies for effectively communicating the career exploration and skill-building opportunities included in a service-to-career pathway.
Expanding the service-to-career pathways ecosystem was also a central focus of the summit. Secretary Paul Monteiro of the Maryland Department of Service and Civic Innovation joined Rowan Hawthorne, Policy and Legislative Affairs Director at the Vermont Department of Labor, and Kaira Esgate, CEO of America’s Service Commissions, for a conversation on aligning interagency partners under the Governor’s vision for service-to-career pathways. The discussion surfaced opportunities for states to collaborate with public and private partners to develop new program models and implement creative funding strategies to maintain flexibility amid federal funding uncertainty.
Attendees also visited Olympus High School, one of five high schools participating in Utah’s Volunteer for Good pilot program. Utah First Lady Abby Cox joined to discuss the role that service and volunteerism can play in reducing polarization and increasing community connectedness. Four young people participating in the One Utah Service Fellowship and Volunteer for Good shared how their service experience is informing and supporting their career aspirations. Attendees also participated in a hands-on service project, assembling 1,200 meal kits and mental health care kits for students.
For more information on the NGA Center’s work to support states in advancing service-to-career pathways, please visit nga.org/projects/service-to-career-pathways.
