Close It Blog

This month, we held the 7th annual Close It Summit, in La Ciudad Diferente, also known as Santa Fe, New Mexico. It was an honor to host over 500 amazing leaders from across the globe focusing on ensuring equity, access and opportunity in the future of working and learning. I had a chance to catch up with Dr. Katherine Bihr, Vice President of Programs and Education at TGR Foundation, A Tiger Woods Charity, where we discussed her Close It 2019 session with Native American and New Mexican professional golfer Notah Begay III. Moderated by Susanne Thompson, Senior Vice President at Discovery Education,... Read More

October is off to an exciting start! This week, I had the privilege of speaking with Lee Lambert, Chancellor of Pima Community College, about the release of “SHIFT HAPPENS @ Pima Community College.” Lee and I had the opportunity to meet in March 2019 at the NAWB Forum in Washington, D.C. It was there that we formed a collaboration to produce “SHIFT [email protected]” Authored by Dr. Merrilea Mayo and the Pima leadership team, SHIFT [email protected] is the first paper of its kind to describe the implementation strategies a large higher education institution has taken to address the rapidly changing environment... Read More

This month, I had the privilege of speaking with Dr. Lorenzo Esters.  Dr. Esters currently serves as Executive Director for Higher Education Partnerships with the Global Education Division of Education Testing Service (ETS), a nonprofit organization that seeks to advance quality and equity in education for all people worldwide.  Dr. Esters will be joining us at the CLOSE IT SUMMIT 2019 to be held October 15-16, 2019, highlighting the new initiative Skills for A New Economy. Lorenzo, I am so pleased to interview you for the CLOSE IT blog, specifically as CLOSE IT less than one month away!  When I... Read More

I recently got the opportunity to sit down with Keith Wardrip of the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia and discuss the latest release of his co-authored paper, Opportunity Occupations Revisited,” which was highlighted by the New York Times in May (https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/02/business/economy/good-jobs-no-college-degrees.html). Keith will be at CLOSE IT 2019 presenting on the report and new research. So, join us!     Hi Keith, I am so glad we got the opportunity to catch up with you and your work at the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia. You’ve been working with the Federal Reserve Bank since 2011. In 2015, we featured you... Read More

Jamai Blivin had the opportunity to sit down with Audrey Williams-Lee, SVP, Human Resources, Talent Acquisition & Philanthropy.  Audrey Williams-Lee joined Hyatt Hotels Corporation in 2017 and serves as the HR leader and advisor for C-suite executives and their leadership teams, leading the development and implementation of workforce and talent strategies. She also leads Hyatt’s community engagement and social impact efforts and directs the company’s philanthropy strategy and approach to charitable giving. Jamai:  Thank you for your time today Audrey. I appreciate your expertise as you lead Hyatt’s Talent Acquisition globally from not only an HR standpoint but also a... Read More

I recently had the pleasure of interviewing Brian Fleming of Sandbox ColLABorative. Brian is the Executive Director of the research and development lab at Southern New Hampshire University in Manchester. Key to the work of Brian’s role at Sandbox is driving an innovation and strategy agenda for the University—which as he notes, is “a very near and immediate innovation agenda.” Jamai: Brian, thanks so much for the opportunity to talk with you about the work at Sandbox. As I continue to learn more about your Center, I find that it is very unique for a higher education institution to have... Read More

December 13, 2018, Denver, CO, The Employment Technology Fund (ETF), a social impact fund focused on breaking down barriers to employment for lower-income adults, announced its investment in PAIRIN to rapidly scale the company’s tools that make education more relevant and hiring more equitable by accelerating the development of employability (soft) skills for people with barriers to employment and de-risking those hires for employers. Denver-based PAIRIN is a fast-growing, social enterprise software company whose products personalize career exploration, professional development, and hiring. PAIRIN’s tools not only assess skills directly related to work performance but also match people to optimal job profiles and training... Read More