Apprenticeship pathway receives $1M grant 

A new professional apprenticeship and training pathway for Hoosiers received over $1 million in grants to fund the next steps. The CEMETS iLab Indiana strategic plan is a pathway rooted in a youth apprenticeship experience starting in high school that could welcome students as early as the 2025-26 school year.The Fairbanks Foundation is awarding grants to two Indiana organizations to launch Indiana talent associations. The associations will work with employers to select occupants, identify needed skills and collaborate with educators to develop education and training content.& CEMETS iLab Indiana is a coalition of more than 200 leaders representing a variety of sectors ranging from business to higher education to government. The coalition identified the creation of the talent associations as the priority of the next step in their plan for the training pathway to serve thousands of Hoosiers. Many who are selected may not have opted to attend college or pursue training after high school.“The need for this new way to access professional education and training is clear. By 2031, 72% of U.S. jobs will require education beyond high school, but only 39% of Indiana adults 25 or older have an associate degree or higher,” said Claire Fiddian-Green, president and...