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Walter P. Paepcke, Aspen Institute Co-Founder
Aspen Institute
Publications
Building Bridges: Lessons from the ECCP Initiative
September 24, 2025
UpSkill America, and Economic Opportunities Program
In 2022, Strada Education Network (Strada) launched the Employer Community College Partnership (ECCP) challenge to strengthen connections between community colleges and employers.
Strada supported 11 cross-sector collaboratives involving diverse industries and geographies to build partnerships characterized by shared ownership, mutual accountability, and aligned goals. Partners were expected to co-invest time, knowledge, and resources to support student success and meet labor market demands.
As the initiative concluded, Strada engaged UpSkill America to examine what worked and what didn’t. Across the board, we found this: when employers and colleges co-owned the work, committing to shared goals, shared risks, and shared results, the partnerships flourished. When they operated from a distance or treated the relationship as optional, outcomes lagged.
This brief highlights the facilitators of partnership success: key behaviors and strategies that community colleges, employers, and partnership structures used to drive impact.
UpSkill America, part of the Economic Opportunities Program, supports employers and workforce organizations to expand and improve high-quality educational and career advancement opportunities for America’s front-line workers. Connect with us on LinkedIn and learn more at upskillamerica.org.
About the Economic Opportunities Program
The Aspen Institute Economic Opportunities Program advances strategies, policies, and ideas to help low- and moderate-income people thrive in a changing economy.
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This paper is the first in a series. It elevates the specific issues that employers indicate are key enablers or inhibitors in their relationships and partnerships with colleges and universities.
This case study shares Marlin Steel’s story over the past decade and illustrates a compelling model for how intentional investment in talent fosters competitive businesses and personal growth.
We’re just getting started with this analysis. Stay tuned in the coming months for insights on the kinds of information about skills that employers are really looking for in wallets and portfolios, where in the talent management life cycle employers think having validated skills will pay off most, and what it will take for employers and HR professionals to adopt tools that use validated skills.
Last week, our second cohort of the Education and Career Mobility Fellowship gathered in Indianapolis for their third and final seminar. Over three days of discussion and collaboration, a clear theme emerged: the growth our fellows experienced was fueled by the power of their collective.
