NASWA Awarded Research and Learning Opportunities Grant

WASHINGTON – The National Association of State Workforce Agencies (NASWA) has been awarded a $1.5 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to help workforce agencies develop multi-state data collaboratives and more timely labor market and workforce information.

“We are honored and excited to receive this significant investment that will help address the critical need for increased workforce data,” said Scott B. Sanders, NASWA President and CEO. “These funds will provide opportunities for states to share workforce, education, and other program data to guide policy and promote economic mobility.”

The grant will build on NASWA’s previous work with the Coleridge Initiative to support the emergence of state-led regional collaborative groups. State data collaboratives enable program and data staff to partner across departments and state boundaries to access and link a broader array of data using a shared secure network. The goal is more rapid development of information and products that support smoother labor market transitions and better employment outcomes for workers and learners.

These funds will also accelerate NASWA’s work in launching the National Labor Exchange (NLx) Research Hub to develop more timely access and functionality for jobs data from the NLx. The NLx Research Hub will make real-time job vacancy information a public utility for the first time, broadening opportunities for research, analytics, and product development. Several state workforce agencies will pilot integrations between the NLx job posting data and traditional labor market information sources through this investment.