WorkforceWorks!! — A Year of Building with Purpose
When Midwest Urban Strategies launched WorkforceWorks!! during Workforce Development Month 2025, the goal was clear: to realign the national conversation around the vital role of Workforce Development Boards (WDBs). This initiative was created to help policymakers, partners, and the public see what the data already proves: WDBs are the foundation of a strong workforce system. They connect employers, educators, and community partners to drive solutions that expand opportunity, strengthen local economies, and ensure policy is informed by practice.
At a time when national conversations often overlook the real impact of workforce systems, WorkforceWorks!! helped amplify the truth our members live every day. Workforce Development Boards (WDBs) make workforce development work. Local workforce systems are driven by these boards, built through partnerships, and designed to serve both employers and job seekers. WorkforceWorks!! demonstrates how policy takes shape through local practice, reminding policymakers that real impact begins at the community level.
Through this campaign, members across the MUS network aligned their messaging and shared examples that reflect what the America’s Talent Strategy outlines in theory through its five pillars of a strong workforce system. Our members are already putting those principles into practice, developing industry-driven partnerships, advancing worker mobility, integrating services, and innovating at the local level to deliver results that last. Each pillar tells part of that story, showing how local action drives national progress.
Industry-Driven Strategies
From apprenticeships in advanced manufacturing to training partnerships in healthcare, members showed what happens when employers help design the pipeline. By co-creating programs that respond directly to market demand, MUS members have aligned training with opportunity, proving that employer engagement is the foundation of a strong economy
Worker Mobility
Across the region, MUS WDBs and affiliate members elevated stories of career advancement; people moving from entry-level jobs to sustainable, family-supporting careers. From wraparound supports like childcare and transportation to stackable credentials and career coaching, members demonstrated that upward mobility begins when barriers come down by building programs with their communities and not for.
Integrated Systems
WorkforceWorks!! highlighted how integration strengthens results. By connecting Workforce Development Boards (WDBs) with education, employers, and economic development partners, local and regional systems worked together more efficiently. This coordination reduced duplication, improved access to services, and created clearer pathways for both workers and employers. Each partnership demonstrated that when systems are aligned, communities benefit and outcomes grow stronger.
Accountability
Throughout the campaign, members tracked and shared measurable outcomes—reporting on job placements, credential attainment, retention rates, and wage growth. This level of reporting reflects what accountability looks like in action, reinforcing transparency and trust with employers, partners, and policymakers. The results tell a clear story: when resources are coordinated, outcomes improve and communities thrive.
Flexibility and Innovation
From piloting new models to embracing digital tools and AI-informed strategies, MUS Workforce Development Boards (WDBs) and affiliate members demonstrated their ability to adapt quickly to community and industry needs. Their commitment to flexibility continues to drive new ideas, expand access, and strengthen local workforce solutions that keep pace with a changing economy. This spirit of innovation defines the MUS network and continues to set the standard for what responsive, community-driven workforce development looks like.
Over the past year, WorkforceWorks!! has done what it set out to do: elevate the work of our members and make visible the systems that change lives quietly but profoundly every day. It reminded us all that workforce development boards are not just service providers, they are economic engines, community builders, and trusted partners in the nation’s talent strategy.
The campaign also strengthened the collective voice of our industry, helping policymakers better understand the purpose and value of WDBs. WorkforceWorks!! was launched in response to the America’s Talent Strategy report. To MUS, WorkforceWorks!! clarifies why WDBs are essential to the public workforce system and how proposals to consolidate programs or replace local governance with a single state structure could limit local responsiveness and weaken the partnerships that drive real results.
