Feb 8, 2016 | Corporate, Economic Security, Education, Leadership, Mentoring, Occupational Segregation, Political, Salary & Compensation, Talent Management, Wage Gap, Work, Workplace Diversity
“The Women’s Empowerment Principles are a set of Principles for business offering guidance on how to empower women in the workplace, marketplace and community. They are the result of a collaboration between the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women) and the United Nations Global Compact and are adapted from the Calvert Women’s Principles®. The development of the Women’s Empowerment Principles included an international multi-stakeholder consultation process, which began in March 2009 and culminated in their launch on International Women’s Day in March 2010.
Subtitled Equality Means Business, the Principles emphasize the business case for corporate action to promote gender equality and women’s empowerment and are informed by real-life business practices and input gathered from across the globe. The Women’s Empowerment Principles seek to point the way to best practice by elaborating the gender dimension of corporate responsibility, the UN Global Compact, and business’ role in sustainable development. As well as being a useful guide for business, the Principles seek to inform other stakeholders, including governments, in their engagement with business.
[x_button shape=”square” size=”regular” float=”none” href=”http://weprinciples.org/Site/PrincipleOverview/” title=”Women’s Empowerment Principles” target=”blank” info=”none” info_place=”top” info_trigger=”hover”]Check out the full site.[/x_button]
Feb 4, 2016 | Economic Security, Education, Leadership, Mentoring, Occupational Segregation, Political, State Initiatives, STEM, Talent Management, Vermont, Wage Gap, Work, Workplace Diversity
“At a recent press conference, Vermont Tech announced their initiative to tackle workforce development, economic development and gender equity by significantly increasing participation rates among women in several historically male-dominated fields. The college has set new annual female enrollment growth targets in civil and environmental engineering technology, computer information technology, computer software engineering, construction management, and mechanical engineering technology. The enrollment targets project annual growth of nearly 40%, each year for the next three years starting in the fall of 2016. By the end of the project term, Vermont Tech should realize an increase of female participation in these programs from 10% to 24%. The momentum of such growth and lessons learned from the activities of the project’s years should yield even greater participation rates beyond 2018.”
[x_button shape=”square” size=”regular” float=”none” href=”http://www.vtc.edu/news/vermont-tech-announces-enrollment-targets-gender-equity-initiative” title=”Vermont Tech Announces Enrollment Targets For Gender Equity Initiative” target=”blank” info=”none” info_place=”top” info_trigger=”hover”]Read the full article.[/x_button]
Feb 3, 2016 | CTS in the news, Education, Mentoring, Occupational Segregation, Political, State Initiatives, STEM, Talent Management, Vermont, Wage Gap, Work, Workplace Diversity
“At a recent press conference, Vermont Tech announced their initiative to tackle workforce development, economic development and gender equity by significantly increasing participation rates among women in several historically male-dominated fields. The college has set new annual female enrollment growth targets in civil and environmental engineering technology, computer information technology, computer software engineering, construction management, and mechanical engineering technology. The enrollment targets project annual growth of nearly 40%, each year for the next three years starting in the fall of 2016. By the end of the project term, Vermont Tech should realize an increase of female participation in these programs from 10% to 24%. The momentum of such growth and lessons learned from the activities of the project’s years should yield even greater participation rates beyond 2018.”
[x_button shape=”square” size=”regular” float=”none” href=”http://www.vtc.edu/news/vermont-tech-announces-enrollment-targets-gender-equity-initiative” title=”Vermont Tech Announces Enrollment Targets For Gender Equity Initiative” target=”blank” info=”none” info_place=”top” info_trigger=”hover”]Read the full article.[/x_button]
Jan 11, 2016 | Economic Security, Education, Mentoring, Non-profit, State Initiatives, Vermont
Champlain College’s Center for Financial Literacy, using national data, has graded all 50 states and the District of Columbia (D.C.) on their efforts to produce financially literate high school graduates. What the grading shows is that we have a long way to go before we are a financially literate nation.
In this 2015 report card, we attempt to measure how well our high schools are providing personal finance education. Although there have been improvements made over the past few years, more can be done. When it comes to report cards, everyone wants an A. But when the Center graded 50 states and D.C. on their financial literacy education, only five states earned an A.
Sadly, 26 states received grades of C, D or F. Less than half were given grades that you would want your children to bring home from school—grades A or B, and 29% had grades of D or F.
Vermont
- Grade: D
- Is a high school course with personal finance concepts required to be taken as a graduation requirement? No, taking a course with personal finance concepts is not a graduation requirement. Local districts may offer a personal finance course either on a stand-alone basis or embedded into another course offering. High school graduation requirements are determined by the local school districts. See: Vermont School Quality and Education Quality Standards Concepts (page 2).
- Education Standards: In 2014, Vermont adopted Vermont Education Quality Standards (EQS) that require local school districts to deliver curriculum aligned to Vermont Proficiency-Based Graduation Requirements (PBGRs) approved by the State Board of Education. Students are required to demonstrate proficiency in global citizenship (including the concepts of civics, economics, geography, world language, cultural studies and history). Although global citizenship includes economics, it does not include financial literacy. In addition to the EQS and PBGRs, educational standards have been approved by the state board of education that include some financial literacy topics, see: Vermont’s Framework of Standards and Learning Opportunities (Framework).
- Caveat: It is not clear how Vermont measures student achievement in financial literacy or how the state monitors local school district implementation of the financial literacy education requirement. The financial literacy topics identified in the Framework are classified as “vital results.” Vital results standards are the responsibility of teachers in all fields of knowledge. Thus, personal finance topics lack a subject matter home in the framework. The financial literacy concepts are fairly sparse and briefly cover the topics of personal economics and career choices.
- Extra Credit: The Center for Financial Literacy at Champlain College created a Financial Literacy Task force of governmental, business and non-profit leaders that made recommendations for policymakers with regard to increasing Vermonter’s financial literacy, see Vermont’s Financial Literacy Action Plan. In 2015, a law was passed creating a financial literacy commission to make policy recommendations to the governor and legislature. See: Vermont Financial Literacy Commission Law (page 16). The Office of the State Treasurer has created a website that provides financial literacy resources. See: Treasurer Financial Literacy Resources. The Treasurer also administers a Financial Literacy Trust Fund.
[x_button shape=”square” size=”regular” float=”none” href=”http://www.champlain.edu/centers-of-excellence/center-for-financial-literacy/report-making-the-grade” title=”Making the Grade: 2015 National Report Card on State of Financial Literacy” target=”blank” info=”none” info_place=”top” info_trigger=”hover”]Read the full report.[/x_button]
Jan 11, 2016 | Economic Security, Education, Mentoring, Non-profit, State Initiatives, Vermont, Work
Understanding Vermont is a report series from the Vermont Community Foundation (VCF) that launched in 2007 and serves as a resource for philanthropists who want to learn about community needs, innovative and model programs, and effective strategies for giving.
Opportunity: 11 Critical Paths for Philanthropy in Vermont, published in November 2015, is the VCF’s newest Understanding Vermont report. You can page through the entire report or easily explore it by issue area.
[x_button shape=”square” size=”regular” float=”none” href=”http://publicassets.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/SWVTfinal.1.pdf” title=”Understanding Vermont 2015″ target=”blank” info=”none” info_place=”top” info_trigger=”hover”]Read the full report.[/x_button]
Dec 30, 2015 | Corporate, Economic Security, Education, Entrepreneurs, Leadership, Occupational Segregation, Political, Talent Management, Work, Workplace Diversity
Using the talents of our full population is critical, writes Lean In founder Sheryl Sandberg
[x_button shape=”square” size=”regular” float=”none” href=”http://www.wsj.com/articles/sheryl-sandberg-when-women-get-stuck-corporate-america-gets-stuck-1443600325?vh=d45c3daae9470a686372172e3cafb4d3d5705866&ts=1443627097″ title=”Sheryl Sandberg: When Women Get Stuck, Corporate America Gets Stuck” target=”blank” info=”none” info_place=”top” info_trigger=”hover”]Read the full article.[/x_button]
