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EMBARGOED FOR RELEASE
Tuesday, May 9, 2000
Contact: Sue Blumenthal
(202) 694-0087

VICE PRESIDENT GORE'S NATIONAL PARTNERSHIP FOR REINVENTING GOVERNMENT ANNOUNCES SEVEN CHARTER MEMBERS OF THE 21ST CENTURY SKILLS NETWORK

"America's competitiveness and prosperity will increasingly depend upon high-skill, high-wage jobs," the Vice President said. "We must work together so Americans can continue learning throughout their lives and get the skills they need to succeed in the 21st century."

The seven network members, along with 13 performance partners and federal representatives across multiple agencies, will share best practices and use an interactive web site, http://www.skillsnetwork.gov, as an electronic conference center to discuss effective strategies. The web site is open to the public and will carry announcements when additional communities may apply as network members.

The seven charter members of the network are:

1. Maine: CASCO Bay Partnership for Workplace Education, University of Southern Maine
2. Maine: Oxford Hills Career Skills Partnership
3. New York: Building Trades Employers' Association
4. Pennsylvania: Allentown Technology Connection
5. Pennsylvania: Philadelphia Opportunities Industrialization Center, Inc.
6. Texas: Alamo Workforce Development, Inc.
7. Texas: The Business and Home Improvement Program for Young Adults, Black United Fund of Texas

The core goals of the 21st Century Skills Community Network are to:

• close the skills gap by sharing effective strategies;
• support lifelong learning for all adults;
• help more workers move into high-skill, high-wage jobs;
• identify and eliminate barriers to success in employment, training and learning programs;
• help communities and government agencies use data to develop effective strategies and measure results;
• model a de-centralized, collaborative, federal/state/local partnership that gets results people care about; and
• provide a continuous feedback system for the federal government as it creates a seamless learning and employment system for all Americans.

The U. S. Department of Education's Office of Vocational and Adult Education, the U. S. Department of Labor, Division of One Stop Operations, and other federal agencies will work closely with the new skills network.