I have written often about the next generation. They are as unique as any generation before them. That sounds cliche, but each generation has been different from the last. Shaped differently by technology, economy, and more. We expect so much of them and always lament they are not like us.
Fortune reported in March 2026 on a bipartisan group seeking to awaken America from the doldrums of complacency. They are ringing the clarion about students, education, and the future of our very economy. They are trying, but the message must be heard by so many and appreciated among a cacophony of other concerns and distractions.
The conclusion of this Bipartisan Policy Center is simple - the education system is broken. The "workforce pipeline" is compromised and that has implications for the workers, employers, and the rest of us who consume the various goods and services.
They are proposing a "national talent strategy," and I am doubtful they mean a new "Star Search" or "Someone has Talent" franchise. They have concluded that without such a strategy, in a rapidly evolving economic vortex, we are "headed towards severe economic instability."
That is both vexing and concerning.
This is not about artificial intelligence (AI), but that is one of the threats they cite. There will be the elimination of various jobs, and yet the advent of others. Are we focused on training people to make buggy whips?
For whatever reason, there is no mention of the isolation of youth, and demise of physical activity. The Fortune article makes no mention of social media and its impact on both soft skills and attention span. The pipeline is an analytical analogy, but what goes into the pipe bears greatly on what comes out the other end.
As the value of college education is questioned in many quarters, and the workplace of tomorrow evolves, are we recruiting, channelling, and facilitating the needs of tomorrow's workforce?
The Policy Center group is focused on AI, remote work, the "gig" economy, education, and more. There are various challenbes, concerns, and perspectives. Some will jump to the solitary focus of how to raise taxes and spend the money.
Having recognized the problems, it will be a shame if the only solution is to shovel more money at the "lost Einsteins" that so many believe are being deprived of their shot at Harvard. While some see providing opportunity to all, "to discover and develop their talents," that battle cry has dumped billions into un marketable college degrees to our collective dismay and harm.
Almost certainly, education processes and foci must change. But that does not necessarily mean more resources or expense as much as it means reallocation. There may be less need for some facilities, institutions, and programs, but more demand for others.
In the end, there is little room for a "traditional college-only pathway," according to the Center. That ignores that there is little history for that pathway, and referring to it as "traditional" is both disingenuous and misleading.
The Center's focus on "options such as apprenticeships, technical credentials, short-term training programs, and opportunities for lifelong learning" is much more deeply rooted in "tradition" and human history that college has ever been.
If the challenges are to be met, that will be through frank and careful consideration of the realities of both the work at hand and the workforce required to address it.
The Center report notes that we "currently spend over $230 billion annually across 150+ programs with no cohesive strategy." If there is a better indictment of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE), with its $268 billion annual budget, that is hard to imagine.
Of the various authorities that might have invested in a "cohesive strategy," some might think DOE could have provided that introspection, analysis, and leadership. Imagine that we spend 4% of our national budget on the DOE, and another 4% on programs, and there is no "cohesive plan."
Sorry, that was sarcastic. There is no need to imagine. Apologies.
In the face of reducing the commitment to that money pit, the Center leaders believe it is time to raise public awareness and mobilize Americans to demand reform. Some in that effort believe that there can be consensus in the workforce pipeline challenge, and that the debate will not be polarizing.
Time will tell.
