2026

By Jessica Paulsen, President, Innovation & Impact, LEAP Innovations As schools nationwide work to accelerate student learning and close persistent achievement gaps, policymakers are taking a closer look at how we measure student growth — and whether current approaches give educators and families the actionable information they need. When Senator Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

Photo: Francisco Martinez, President & CEO of Project QUEST, and Lelani Mercado, Chief Program Officer of Project QUEST with a December 2025 graduate. Across the United States, communities are searching for workforce solutions that deliver real, lasting economic mobility, not just short-term job placements. In San Antonio, Texas, one model has been proving what works for more than three decades:

America Forward applauds the U.S. Department of Labor’s announcement of a new $145 million pay-for-performance apprenticeship incentives initiative. This initiative constitutes a significant investment aimed at expanding Registered Apprenticeship nationwide and paves the way for a more outcomes-oriented, formula-based approach to financing apprenticeships. Key provisions in the recently-released application materials closely align with America Forward and Apprenticeships for America’s recommendations

Washington, D.C. - America Forward is honored to announce an exciting new grant from Ascendium Education Group to support a new initiative, Blazing a Trail for Evidence-Based Economic Mobility Strategies. Over the next two years, America Forward will partner with a cohort of leading high-impact sectoral training providers to shift public investment toward evidence-based programs while building providers' capacity to

Today, America Forward and Results for America co-published two policy briefs emphasizing the importance of elevating evidence-based strategies and ongoing, intentional evidence-building under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA). Our public workforce system currently invests only a small proportion of funding in workforce development strategies proven to drive stronger economic outcomes for workers, employers, and our economy, and provides