Can Apprenticeship Meet The Demands Of The Future Of Work?

This week, the nation is celebrating National Apprenticeship Week. However, unlike the fanfare around “Back to School” or “Teacher Appreciation Week,” our local school has been silent in its elevation or celebration of this increasingly popular work-based learning model. Meanwhile, if my teenage boys were in high school in Switzerland, they would have been hearing about apprenticeships for years as a pathway to career opportunity. In the United States, that has not historically been the case, but things may be starting to change.

Colorado is one state where “apprenticeship” is not an unknown term (hence my surprise that I have not heard a peep about it from school). From the early days of General Assembly expanding their unique tech training model to the Denver area. Then we saw the rise of CareerWise Colorado, founded by national apprenticeship champion Noel Ginsburg. Today, an emerging cohort of fast-growing apprenticeship providers like Multiverse are looking to Colorado given the state’s growing need for tech talent. Suffice to say Colorado is no stranger to innovative education and employment options.

But why and how did Colorado become such a hub for this trending future of work option? It’s in part due to political champions for the apprenticeship model, such as now Senator John Hickenlooper, who saw CareerWise Colorado grow in popularity and reach under his term as Colorado’s Governor. Followed now by Governor Jared Polis and countless policymakers at the state and local level who have become champions for apprenticeship as an option for learners beyond high school. Support for apprenticeships is gaining traction at the national level, too, with everything from initiatives by the White House, national partnerships like the Partnership to Advance Youth Apprenticeship (which includes CareerWise Colorado), the launch of new organizations such as Apprenticeships for America, and more that are all advocating for new policies that will streamline and expand access to earn-and-learn opportunities.

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