| Notes |
Among the most prominent of these cradle-to-career networks is the Strive Partnership, which emerged from a workforce collaborative in the Cincinnati metropolitan area. In Cincinnati, top level leaders developed a common agenda for educational and economic development focused on increasing the number of college and career ready youth. From this leadership, level flows cascading collaboration, in which organizations in the same sector work together to eliminate redundancy, align their efforts to the network’s goals, and utilize shared metrics for success [26].
The Strive model has been scaled up through the development of a national network and technical assistance center. Of the nearly 50 communities in the U.S. identified as members of this national network, several are in rural places [27]. Advocates for these models describe them as adaptable to any local context based on the prioritization of developing local leadership and goals. Advocates also emphasize the need for fidelity to a tested theory of action [21]. Yet, for such partnerships to be effective, “they must be fit for purpose, in this context, at this time” [3] (p. 637). That is, such partnership models may not be automatically transferable; rather, they must be driven by local priority missions and goals, based on the unique social geography and context. |