Education and Workforce
The bipartisan, interstate and binational Midwestern Legislative Conference Education & Workforce Committee provides a forum for state and provincial legislators to exchange information and ideas on a wide range of policy issues, particularly those identified by the committee’s legislative officers and members. Activities include ongoing policy research, committee-sponsored webinars for legislators and legislative staff, and in-person meetings.
The committee is made up of legislators from the states and provinces that are part of CSG’s Midwestern Legislative Conference. The committee’s composition changes every biennium, with appointments made by legislative appointing authorities and leaders of the MLC. The CSG Midwest staff liaison to the committee is Derek Cantù.
Officers for the 2025-’26 biennium are Nebraska Sen. Jana Hughes and Minnesota Rep. Bernie Perryman, co-chairs; and Kansas Rep. Mari-Lynn Poskin, vice chair.
The MLC Education and Workforce Committee met and led policy sessions in conjunction with the 2025 MLC Annual Meeting, which was held July 27-30 in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.
Agenda for committee meeting and sessions in Saskatoon
Summary of recent work and activities
In 2023-2024, the committee was led by Ohio Sen. Hearcel Craig and Wisconsin Rep. Joel Kitchens, co-chairs; and Minnesota Sen. Heather Gustafson, vice chair. During the 2023-2024 biennium, the committee:
- hosted an in-person policy workshop for legislators on state strategies for building the Midwest’s energy workforce;
- developed a resource for legislators on policy options to address teacher shortages and bolster states’ educator pipelines;
- organized in-person meetings on topics such as the state-led integration of education and workforce initiatives; literacy education and the science of reading; state laws on academic remediation; trends in higher education policy; and Michigan’s innovative employer-led, sector-based approach to workforce development.
- held webinars for legislators on addressing teacher shortages and another on tech and workforce development for rural areas; and
- contributed policy articles to the CSG publication Stateline Midwest on topics such as the role of school librarians in the Midwest’s K-12 schools; improving the oversight and delivery of early learning and child care; reforms of college-level remedial education; state policies to address chronic absenteeism; new laws on financial literacy; efforts to boost states’ and provinces’ legal-immigration workforces; the rise and spread of “science of reading” laws; Michigan’s sector-based approach to workforce development; Indiana’s new career scholarship accounts for K-12 students; Education Savings Accounts in Iowa and other states; and the varying governance models used by states to oversee and develop education policy.
Resources from 2024 committee meeting in Columbus
The MLC Education & Workforce Development Committee meets in person at least once a year as part of the MLC Annual Meeting, most recently in Columbus in 2024 and Detroit in 2023.
- “Developmental Education Reform in Illinois” | Mike Abrahamson, Senior Manager of Research & Policy, Partnership for College Completion
- “Reforms to Developmental Education: A Synthesis of the Evidence” | Katie Beal, External Affairs Associate, MDRC
- “Academic Recovery in Ohio: An Overview of K-12 Achievement & Learning Acceleration in Ohio” | Ohio Sen. Andrew Brenner
- “The Workforce Connection: Elevating Career Development in Primary & Secondary Education” | Steve Dackin, Director, Ohio Department of Education & Workforce, and Rick Carfagna, Vice President of Government Affairs, Ohio Chamber of Commerce
- “Science of Reading Implementation: Indiana’s Priorities for Early Literacy” | Rebecca Estes, Assistant Secretary for Educator Talent, Indiana Department of Education
- Stateline Midwest article on “Colleges, States Rethink Approach to College-Level ‘Remedial’ Education; New K-12 Supports Also Considered”
- Agenda
In this webinar, led by two interstate legislative groups of CSG's Midwestern Legislative Conference, participants explored a mix of school-based strategies and state policies to keep schools and students safe — a paramount concern for today's policy leaders.
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In conjunction with the 79th Annual Meeting of the Midwestern Legislative Conference (MLC), the MLC Education & Workforce Committee will hold its 2025 Meeting on Sunday, July 27, in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.
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Open to all legislators, legislative staff and interested others, this webinar of the Midwestern Legislative Conference Education & Workforce Committee will allow participants to share noteworthy developments on issues related to education and workforce policy and will include a featured presentation by the Urban Institute on a valuable new resource for policymakers. Committee members also will have the opportunity to share ideas on the committee's upcoming work over the biennium.
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Successful community development efforts are rarely the byproduct of a single company or person. It is through the collaboration of different industry partners, educational institutions and workforce development specialists working in the field that communities can develop effective strategies. During this webinar, experts from the Center on Rural Innovation shared their insights on how policymakers can build these partnerships.
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