® Michigan WorkKeys Conference Dick Ferguson CEO and Chair – ACT, Inc. ® Michigan WorkKeys Conference Nov. 6, 2007

® Michigan WorkKeys Conference Some Background on ACT  Founded in 1959  Education in the ’50s  A not-for-profit 501(c)(3) public trust  Initial service: The ACT ®  ACT’s philosophy

® Michigan WorkKeys Conference ACT’s Evolution  Belief: College readiness begins early  Linking the ACT to college AND career planning  Testing to inform decision-making  Students, Parents, Counselors, etc.  Creating a college readiness SYSTEM  EXPLORE ®, PLAN ®, and the ACT

® Michigan WorkKeys Conference ACT’s Evolution  Development of College Readiness Standards TM, benchmarks  Advocacy for rigor and partnerships with states, districts, etc.  Professional/occupational assessments  Expanding from college readiness to work readiness

® Michigan WorkKeys Conference ACT’s Evolution  Developed in the late 1980s  Early warnings: Impending crises in the workforce  Workforce readiness issues similar to college readiness ACT’s Workforce Development Division

® Michigan WorkKeys Conference The Perfect Storm

® Michigan WorkKeys Conference The Perfect Storm Circumstances:  Educational pipeline  Increased reliance on immigrant labor  Retirement of baby boomers  Global competition for natural resources  Outsourcing

® Michigan WorkKeys Conference Jobs require higher skills  DOL: 80 percent of jobs will require some postsecondary education  DOL: 75 percent of employees must be retrained to keep the jobs they have  Meanwhile, HR professionals report difficulties in hiring workers with essential skills Threats to the Workforce The Perfect Storm

® Michigan WorkKeys Conference Shifting demographics:  BLS: More than 25 percent of the working population will reach retirement age by 2010  By 2012:  U.S. workers aged will grow 51 percent  U.S. workers aged will decline 7 percent  Hispanics: Fastest-growing segment of the workforce  However, one-third don’t have a diploma The Perfect Storm Threats to the Workforce

® Michigan WorkKeys Conference Inadequate skills held by workers  BLS: Employers estimate that skill deficiencies are held by 39 percent of incumbents and 26 percent of new hires  Adult Literacy Survey:  50 percent of the U.S. population is functionally illiterate  52 percent of high school graduates lack basic skills required to do jobs adequately The Perfect Storm Threats to the Workforce

® Michigan WorkKeys Conference The Perfect Storm ACT studies:  Rigor at Risk (2007)  In 2006, only one-fourth of ACT-tested students met ALL college-readiness benchmarks  1 in 5 met no benchmarks at all  ACT Curriculum Survey (2007)  65 percent of college instructors say state standards prepare students “poorly” Education Pipeline – Are we preparing students?

® Michigan WorkKeys Conference The Perfect Storm Skilled Labor Gaps – ACT WorkKeys ® Data 7 Below Level 18% 5% 32% 7% 6% All Examinees 9/06–8/07 Job Profiles 9/02–8/07 0% 4% 20% 43% 34% 0% N4, ,739 Reading for Information 7 Below Level 17% 6% 28% 25% 16% 8% All Examinees 9/06–8/07 Job Profiles 9/02–8/07 1% 5% 14% 36% 44% 0% N3, ,582 Applied Mathematics

® Michigan WorkKeys Conference The writing on the wall:  A Nation at Risk (1983)  Countries matching/surpassing U.S. educational achievements  Educators losing sight of basic schooling principles  Foreign products gaining edge  Other reports: Insufficient number of skilled workers to fill jobs

® Michigan WorkKeys Conference  Multiple components:  Job profiling  Skills assessment  Skill training  Foundational Skills – applicable to whole workforce  2007 – Personal Skills added  Helps employers avoid a ‘shotgun’ approach to training The WorkKeys SYSTEM

® Michigan WorkKeys Conference A ‘ruler’ for skills

® Michigan WorkKeys Conference  A career skills credential to be used with diplomas, resumes, etc.  Powered by WorkKeys ®  WorkKeys – 14,000 jobs profiled TM

® Michigan WorkKeys Conference BronzeSilver Gold Automotive Body Repairers Butchers & Meat Cutters Cooks, Cafeteria Workers Furniture Finishers Home Health Aides Housekeeping Supervisors Janitorial Supervisors Machine Set-up Operators Painting & Coating Workers Refuse Material Collectors Accounting Clerks Auto Master Mechanics Billing Clerks Licensed Practical Nurses Machine Operators Machinists Medical Laboratory Technicians Payroll Clerks Pipe Fitters Production Inspectors Computer Programmers Electricians Environmental Engineering Technicians Executives Instrumentation Technicians Librarians Semiconductor Processors Training & Development Specialists Vocational Education Teachers Wholesale & Retail Buyers TM

® Michigan WorkKeys Conference TM

® Michigan WorkKeys Conference TM

® Michigan WorkKeys Conference WHY?  ONE credential, nationally recognized  Survives changes in government  Has MEANING for employers TM

® Michigan WorkKeys Conference Michigan – Leading the Way

® Michigan WorkKeys Conference  Grand Rapids, Mich. – WIRED project  Goal: 50,000 NCRCs issued by 2012  Buy-in from more than 100 regional employers  Michigan Merit Exam – Making the NCRC available to ALL Michigan students TM

® Michigan WorkKeys Conference Surviving ‘The Perfect Storm’

® Michigan WorkKeys Conference  Adopt solutions that work  Work together  Embrace a common language – related to skills  Get business leaders to get behind a skills-based message Surviving ‘The Perfect Storm’

® Michigan WorkKeys Conference ® Questions/Comments?