Research

In this data brief, we provide the first in a series of analyses that investigate the costs, benefits, adoption, and contexts of workforce-aligned aid programs with a specific focus on WRKS. In the broader project, we will examine whether WRKS enhanced labor market prospects for students and affected educational choices. In this brief, we examine who participates in the aid program, with a focus on geographic variation and demographic characteristics. We also investigate the most popular high-demand fields that WRKS recipients enrolled in and the educational pathways that these students completed.

Disclaimer: This research is in progress and reflects preliminary findings.

• In 2016, Kentucky set a statewide postsecondary educational achievement goal to “accelerate job creation, grow the economy, and expand our tax base.” (KY Council 2016-2021 Strategic Agenda)

• In 2018, Work Ready Kentucky Scholarship (WRKS) initiated to provide financial aid for students enrolled in targeted workforce-linked sub-baccalaureate degree programs.

• Workforce-aligned scholarship programs aim to create career pathways to high-wage, high-demand occupations, and to increase labor supply for industry needs.

• We investigate the costs, benefits, adoption, and contexts of workforce-aligned scholarship programs.

Disclaimer: This research is in progress and reflects preliminary findings.

Over the past few decades, a major tenet of the Republican party has focused on increasing economic prosperity. Workforce development and training has been one strategy to align educational credential attainment to high demand fields in each state. Over 24 states have adopted workforce aligned scholarship programs that seek to increase the number of high demand credentials in their state. This analysis uses a Linear Probability Model to investigate if political party control predicts whether a state adopts a workforce aligned scholarship program. Republican legislative control is associated with roughly a 20 percent increase in the likelihood a state adopts this type of scholarship program. Having a Republican Governor has less of an impact on adoption compared to legislative control. This may be due to the mechanics of the legislative process.