Black and Gold Graduation

How to Connect Youth to Opportunity—And Give Them Real Skills, Too

via 1776 Insights We’re in the midst of high school graduation season. This undoubtedly means you’re inundated with stories about which college your colleague’s child will attend next fall or what great job opportunity has postponed college for now. I hear a lot of stories about these...

OPM Attack should put HR Managers on Notice

Technology has become so engrained and vital to our everyday lives, but with each new data breach, we’re reminded of the price we pay for its access and convenience. The recent breach of federal government data at the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is a prime example of the...

SkillSmart Partner Spotlight featuring Northern Virginia Community College

As a founding member of the National Capital Region Cyber Security Task Force (NCR Task Force), we’ve partnered with other organizations similarly passionate about solving for data and cyber security. The NCR Task Force is focused on creating viable solutions that will generate a...

Ensuring Middle Skills Don’t Become Forgotten Skills

There are tens of millions of middle-skill jobs in the United States today. These jobs are defined as those that require education beyond high school but not necessarily a traditional two or four-year degree. Middle-skill jobs make up the largest segment, roughly 54%, of today’s labor...

SkillSmart Partner Spotlight featuring Montgomery Business Development Corporation and Rx for Employability

  With our corporate office located in Montgomery County, MD, we’ve had the privilege of working with local employers to gain a deeper understanding of their workforce needs and challenges through our partnership with the Montgomery Business Development Corporation (MBDC)....

SkillSmart Partner Spotlight featuring Per Scholas

SkillSmart is proud to partner with other organizations whose missions are similar to ours in creating a smarter, more competitive workforce. Our partner Per Scholas is determined to break the cycle of poverty by providing technology education, access, training and job placement...

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: SkillSmart to Partner with Per Scholas

SkillSmart and Per Scholas, a nationally recognized IT job training nonprofit, today announced a partnership to help ensure students in the National Capital Region are acquiring the skills that IT employers need. Per Scholas delivers IT-Ready training, a tuition-free 8-week course,...

TechHire – Building Pathways to Employment

  Last month, at the National League of Cities, President Obama announced TechHire, a new public private partnership focused on building meaningful pathways to employment in information technology (IT). The announcement is right on time. As America continues to add jobs at an...

Reducing the Skills Gap: Mike Knapp, SkillSmart

Center Maryland welcomed Mike Knapp, CEO & Co-Founder of SkillSmart — a job placement platform that takes a unique approach to addressing the skills gap that exists between employers and job seekers. Mike explains how SkillSmart identifies and matches employers’ needs to job...

Today’s Workforce: Reconnecting Opportunity Youth

There are significant challenges facing our young people that consequentially cost our economy over $6 trillion. Youth unemployment is now a critical issue; sitting at about 14%, it is two times the national average and represents more than 6.7 million youth aged 16-24 (this group has...

Addressing Workforce Development in Montgomery County: An Economy at a Crossroads

“Fifteen years into the new millennium, Montgomery County finds itself at an economic crossroads. Over the last decade, even as national and regional economies suffered through a near economic depression, employers and employees in Montgomery County have continued to provide the jobs...

Member Spotlight: SkillSmart’s Jason Green Solves Unemployment Issues Through New Currency.

SkillSmart helps you find your dream job. Whether you are looking to launch a career or find your fit, the company is there for you. SkillSmart is a next-generation job-placement platform that matches job seekers to employers based on skill proficiency. We caught up with Jason Green,...