A recent report from the Education to Employment Alliance highlights a critical issue: while 49% of jobs in Colorado require skills training beyond high school but not a four-year degree, only 15% of working-age Coloradans possess these middle-skill credentials.

This skills gap is particularly pronounced in Jefferson County (Jeffco), a large suburb of 570,000 residents west of Denver, where industries like construction, advanced manufacturing, healthcare, and IT are experiencing acute worker shortages. However, the issue isn’t a lack of talent or interest in skills training—it’s an opportunity gap.

Enter the Jefferson County Stackable Credentials Blueprint, a project that brought together 40 employers, educators, and government and community organizations to design an evidence-informed process for identifying, creating, and stacking stackable pathways that offer clear, accessible on-ramps to high-quality jobs and economic mobility. Stackable pathways offer a flexible, modular approach to education and career advancement and consist of shorter-term qualifications or certifications that individuals can accumulate over time, allowing them to progress in their careers without committing to a full degree program. This approach addresses both employer needs and learner aspirations.

Watch this four-minute video on the power of partnership and stackable credentials:

To better understand the barriers and supports in post-secondary credentialing and ensure the Blueprint was mutually beneficial for Opportunity Seekers and Employers alike, Colorado Succeeds partnered with Young Invincibles to collect quantitative and qualitative data from over 400 Jefferson County young adults.

While interacting with this group, four distinct learner profiles prevailed: the Upskill, the Reskill, the Disengaged, and the Traditional Pathways learners. The research by the Young Invincibles team provided critical insights into the perceived barriers and supports, and their final recommendations reflect the distinct needs of all four learner profiles. Read their full report: Workforce Chutes & Education Ladders.

“The stackable credentials blueprint work is really opening up a door for reinventing education and career pathways. “ – Melanie Kesner, Rocky Mountain Regional Director, Young Invincibles

The Stackable Credential Blueprint, a findings report, and guidebook published in April 2024, recommends a five-step process for creating seamless on-ramps to family-sustaining wage jobs. Each phase of the process includes detailed guiding questions and recommendations, as well as potential career maps for construction, IT, healthcare, and advanced manufacturing.

In addition to the research and guidebook, Colorado Succeeds facilitated a three-part workshop series with key Jeffco stakeholders to further understand the biggest gaps and opportunities in the region that talent intermediaries wanted to pursue collaboratively. Now, several key partners across education and workforce will come together to codify and implement the next steps.

Thank you to the many partners, including Young Invincibles, JeffCo EDC, Arvada Chamber of Commerce, Jefferson County Workforce Center, and numerous regional chambers of commerce and workforce entities. And, special thanks to the Colorado Gives Foundation for their tremendous leadership and support of this project.