February 11, 2020
© Miss America Foundation
In my earliest of memories, my interests always revolved around science in one way or another, even if I was too young to understand the science that was behind them.
Blog
January 30, 2020
© Child Care Aware of America
As a business leader, you’ve noticed it is becoming more and more difficult to hire and retain qualified workers. You’ve likely even considered the longer-term scenarios – will it be even more challenging to secure a reliable and productive workforce 5 or 10 or even 20 years from now?
December 17, 2019
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The current unemployment rate in Iowa is 2.5%, and there are currently 40,000 people on unemployment and 60,000 job openings. As historically low unemployment continues, employers are always looking for opportunities to recruit more workers and also to retain their existing workforce. To solve this challenge, Iowa business leaders have increased wages, offered flexible work environments where possible, and expanded benefits. More recently, one of those benefits is childcare.
October 25, 2019
© Photo by Ian Wagreich / © U.S. Chamber of Commerce
Each year, as the Chamber Foundation hosts the Talent Forward national workforce conference, we focus on talent—educating and training, talent tech and data, recruiting, hiring, and upskilling. With no shortage of talent challenges, the opportunities for informative discussion are endless. While a day devoted to dissecting talent-related topics could focus solely on the problems, Talent Forward is all about the solutions.
October 11, 2019
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Finding the right childcare provider for your family is a personal choice, and not one that can be outsourced very easily. Child Care Aware® of America Executive Director Lynette Fraga, PhD, spoke with Scott MacFarlane of NBC Washington about some specific questions parents can ask, ways to assess your unique family needs, and how to understand and develop an ongoing relationship with your childcare provider.
September 24, 2019
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In this country, the early childhood education system is in market failure. In recent years we have seen the greatest federal funding increases for early childhood education in history, and yet those significant investments just barely make a dent to tackle the need. In 2018, NASEM studied “how to fund early care and education for children…that is accessible, affordable to families, and of high quality, including a well-qualified and adequately supported workforce.” The report concluded that a financial windfall of around $54 billion would be required.
September 5, 2019
On Tuesday, August 27, the Chamber Foundation partnered with Linda Smith of the BPC to host a Twitter chat discussing infrastructure challenges for early childhood education facilities. In a span of 45 minutes, the participants of this chat were able to provide more than one million Twitter accounts with data, research, and case studies arguing for early childhood education to gain a seat at the table where infrastructure conversations are happening.
August 27, 2019
A core responsibility of a chamber or local economic development agency is to support the economic vitality of the communities they serve. To succeed in that role, it is critical to keep abreast of trends in society to anticipate change and stay ahead. By focusing on building a strong economic foundation for a rural community, that leverages existing resources and tools wherever possible, community leaders can develop a powerful toolkit for courting individuals and business to consider relocating to their towns.
August 21, 2019
© Hiring Our Heroes
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation’s Hiring Our Heroes and the state of Virginia announce an expansion of the Virginia Military Spouse Economic Empowerment Zone (MSEEZ).
August 20, 2019
© Hiring Our Heroes
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation’s Hiring Our Heroes initiative and Grow with Google, the tech company’s economic opportunity effort, announced a collaborative effort to identify specific challenges military spouses face participating in entrepreneurial endeavors; growing small businesses, participating in remote work; and reskilling to growth industries.