This week’s featured startup
| Internship on Demand (Ryan McKernan, Co-Founder, CTO) – B2B SaaS solution helping companies improve outdated internship and early talent hiring practices. Employers host custom cohort-based experiences built to match a company’s unique talent experience, broadening their brand’s reach, improving diversity, and saving time in the recruiting process. |
Data Dive
Low-Wage Workers as Percent of the Workforce, by State (Visual Capitalist) – For the past 15 years, the federal minimum wage has remained unchanged, with its real value now at its lowest point in 67 years.
Investment
Making Space: The Talent Acquisition Platform Empowering Disabled Workers and Companies – Making Space connects recruiters with qualified disabled candidates, offering resources to help employers better support and collaborate with disabled workers to foster a more inclusive work environment.
Maximum Fidelity Surgical Simulations raises $2.25M in Seed funding – The St. Louis based company provides lifelike cadavers to create highly realistic surgical simulations for medical education.
Quizrr raises $1.4M for human and labor rights trainings – The company will expand its position supporting multinationals on global mandatory human rights due diligence.
Skil’d AI Raises $300 Million for Scalable AI Robotics Platform – The National Association of Manufacturers projects 2.1M unfulfilled manufacturing jobs by 2030. Skild enables robots to perform novel tasks alongside humans or in dangerous environments.
Swiss EdTech firm Taskbase bags $3.6M – Taskbase helps digital learning providers offer personalised educational experiences, by enabling the integration of AI features.
London-based Niya raises £1.5m to build career platform for underrepresented workforces – The company’s AI-powered career management platform helps refugees, migrants and low-income citizens progress in their careers via upskilling, mentoring and employment opportunities.
Tierra Encantada receives $38M in investment from Susquehanna Growth Equity – The Minneapolis based company specializes in Spanish immersion childcare to children ages 6 weeks through 6 years.
Events
Innovative Strategies for Student Mental Health and Success (Queensborough Community College) – How behavioral science can identify and address students’ hidden mental health challenges and connect them with vital support.
The Case for Education-to-Career Pathway Systems (Jobs for the Future) – Hear from JFF’s Pathways to Prosperity Coalition about the research and data supporting the education-to-career pathways movement.
Opportunities
$1M worth of engineering support for workforce nonprofits (deadline 7/26) – Nonprofit ENG(INE) pairs nonprofits with engineers to deliver strategic technological builds. In 2024, they will work with 4 nonprofits to deliver on their mission of advancing social & economic opportunity.
Butler Accelerator for Education and Workforce Innovation (deadline 7/28) – Participating companies will receive a $100k investment, 1:1 strategy meetings, introductions to mentors, investors, customers, and more.
Education Cannot Wait Announces $5M Grant in Response to Floods in Somalia – Climate change is wiping out countless schools, and an entire generation is at risk of being left behind. ECW is raising $1.5B to reach 20 million crisis-impacted children and adolescents.
In the news
Biden-Harris Administration Awards Over $244M To Modernize, Diversify, Expand Registered Apprenticeships In Growing Industries (USDOL) – It’s the largest combined investment to date for the learn-and-earn workforce model.
BMW Group Nurtures Talents and Strengths at World Youth Skills Day (Automotive News) – Their new Talent Campus will provide training and professional development for 40,000 employees in Munich – including 900 apprentices and 300 participants in young talent programs.
Digital Divide: Students Surge Ahead (Inside Higher Ed) – A majority of students say AI has helped them get better grades, as well as work more efficiently.
Growing Gig Economy: Nearly 79% of Employers Find Gig Workers Surpassing Job Requirements (MSN) – Companies are increasingly relying on these workers for their flexibility, diverse skill sets, and specialized expertise.
Target to Offer Debt-Free Education to Employees (Central Oregon Daily) – The program will be available this fall for more than 340,000 U.S.-based part-time and full-time students.
Will the AI Revolution Collapse the Cybersecurity Skills Gap (Security Magazine) – By 2028, AI could eliminate the need for specialized education in 50% of entry-level cybersecurity positions. But can it be integrated into existing cybersecurity frameworks without creating vulnerabilities?
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