New Skills Ready Network empowers leaders of tomorrow 

Hundreds of educators, students, employers and policymakers gathered for the New Skills Ready Network (NSRN) Fall Convening Nov. 19 in downtown Indianapolis, highlighting the many strides made to bridge gaps in postsecondary education and workforce readiness.& & & Launched in 2020 with a $7 million investment by JPMorganChase across six cities, the initiative focuses on empowering underserved students through quality career pathways.& Spearheaded by EmployIndy, the Indianapolis chapter showcased how innovative partnerships enhance student success and strengthen the region’s workforce.& & & Kevin Lopez, a first-year business major at Indiana University Indianapolis, believes his interests led him to pursue higher education.& “I wanted to do something with numbers once I got to college,” Lopez said. “Being around accounting and learning about the main parts of running a business attracted me to business.”& Indianapolis’ unique labor force challenges underscored the importance of initiatives like NSRN. With only 67.5% of the working-age population participating in the labor force and a 14.1% poverty rate among working-age residents, these programs aim to address systemic issues.& The city’s talent pipeline has historically struggled with retaining college graduates, ranking among the bottom ten cities in this metric. Through efforts like enhanced career advising and guaranteed seamless...