collage essential skills program funders page

Underserved populations were the hardest hit by pandemic job losses, and they face the rockiest path to finding employment.

ESP unlocks opportunity for these groups through FREE training videos that teach the soft skills employers are looking for, while allowing learners to earn digital badge credentials. Let’s work together to create a more level economic playing field!

+ THE PROBLEM

Employers have long reported valuing essential skills (like communication and teamwork) more than technical skills when making hiring or advancement decisions.

Research shows that low-wage workers and racial/ethnic minorities are perceived to have lower levels of soft skills, impeding their ability to earn a decent income. These trends have increased during the COVID recession, hindering economic recovery in marginalized communities that were already struggling. The growing soft skills gap is one of the drivers of inequality that too often results in the rich getting richer, while the poor get poorer.

+ OUR SOLUTION

The Essential Skills Program is building an engaging series of FREE soft skills training modules that allow learners to earn digital badge credentials employers actually value, and empower candidates to thrive in the job market.

To ensure ESP effectively serves the learners who most need support, we are building our curriculum with the input of pilot partners, whose students and clients represent a diverse array of populations, including indigenous individuals, justice-involved individuals, Black and LatinX individuals, and military veterans.

Work with ESP to ensure that your time, talent and funds create meaningful impact on the communities you care most about.

We have big plans: we want to ensure that ANYONE seeking to build and demonstrate their soft skills can use ESP modules and earn badges. Our tech-forward solution is highly scalable and designed for maximum accessibility.
Our leadership team is experienced and proven: we previously scaled the New World of Work Essential Skills Program, which delivered soft skills training across the California Community Colleges system, awarding more than 27,000 digital badges through over 400 partner organizations.
ESP has been awarded a highly competitive grant from Walmart.org to support our formation, initial curriculum development and testing.

WHO WE SERVE

Through our network of pilot partners, including education providers and workforce development organizations, we’re learning from the feedback of diverse participants, including:

Confident smiling african american woman with crossed hands on chest

If you’re currently supporting impactful job training or workforce development programs, we’d love to discuss how ESP can accelerate the success of those organizations and their learners.

We’ve designed ESP to be seamlessly integrated into existing services, and offer train-the-trainer programs and curriculum customization to ensure that we can meet partners’ unique needs.

WHAT WE’RE LOOKING FOR

Thanks to Walmart.org, ESP is developing our inclusive and engaging curriculum, and piloting lessons with 12 partners who serve diverse learners around the U.S. and the world.

We are actively seeking funding to support our second stage of work, including the creation of stackable open digital badges which will empower learners to verify their skills in the job market. These badges will contain metadata with links to Emsi’s labor market library, creating real value for learners and valuable signals for employers.

CONTENT CREATION. Thanks, Walmart.org!

DIGITAL BADGE DEVELOPMENT. We need a booster!

Beyond financial support, we’re very much interested in your time, talent and expertise.