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The Collaboratives

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Overview

The Multi-state Data Collaborative Network was developed through a series of convenings of state policy, program, and data leaders who had an interest in developing a means for states to work together to address shared problems of policy and practice through data.

The reports of these convenings are below. 

 

Midwest Collaborative (MWC)

The Midwest Collaborative (MWC) was formed in 2018 as a group of state agencies and research institutions interested in new data approaches to understand workers’ and learners’ labor market transitions and measure the labor market outcomes of education and work opportunities and public interventions. The MWC developed two of the signature products of the multi-state data collaborative network, the Unemployment to Reemployment Portal and the Multi-state Postsecondary Report.

The MWC has focused on developing a formal governance model for the Multi-state Data Collaboratives and is currently developing an RFI process to foster partnerships with post-secondary and non-profit partners who can help advance the MWC’s capacity to produce a pipeline of data products that impact public policies, programs, or strategies (see Projects and Products/Pipeline Projects).

MWC states established the following priority topics in the fall of 2022. The MWC seeks solutions that have a particular focus on equity, in terms of race, ethnicity, income, or geography.

  1. Examining education, training, and employment pathways of non-degree credential holders 
  2. Connections between higher education and employment, with an emphasis on credential attainment in industries of interest (advanced manufacturing, automotive, technology, health care, education) 
  3. Access and utilization of Unemployment Insurance programs 
  4. Access and utilization of Child, Family, and Social Service programs (particularly child care and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)) 
  5. Issues pertaining to supply and demand in the PK-12 education workforce

Southern Regional Data Collaborative (SRDC)

The Southern Regional Data Collaborative (SRDC) formed in 2021 with a group of state workforce and education agency representatives. The SRDC’s primary goal is to identify and build projects and products to answer critical state questions related to policy and practice. Another goal of the SRDC is to expand the network to include other state agencies. The SRDC plans to bring new agencies to the table by demonstrating the value of the network’s learning and exchange opportunities and through product development.

The SRDC has developed priority areas of focus:

1. Credentials of Value

2. Post-Secondary Non-Completers

3. Unemployment Insurance Measures of Timeliness.

To support project and product innovation aligned with these priorities, the SRDC has established three working groups (see Projects and Products/Pipeline Projects).  

Eastern States Longitudinal Data Collaborative (ESLDC)

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The Eastern States Longitudinal Data Collaborative (ESLDC) was formed in 2020, with support from the U.S. Department of Education's Statewide Longitudinal Data System grant program to collaboratively develop solutions to address challenges in analyzing education and workforce agency data and to pool resources so data analysis may create products that inform public policy. The ESLDC created an interim executive committee in 2022 to establish priority areas of focus, examine data governance, propose a permanent governance structure, and pursue shared data projects.