Building pathways to economic mobility
What We Do
Ascendways helps connect education and workforce systems to advance economic mobility.
We support organizations from K-12 education, higher education, and industry to build equitable pathways to high-wage, high-growth careers.
Focus Areas
We provide consulting services on policies and programs at the intersection of education and the workforce.
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Advising teams of leaders from education and workforce to partner seamlessly on shared goals.
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Systemic change requires systemic planning. We help governments and organizations understand their current challenges, and develop a concrete action plan to address them.
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When programs and resources are aligned to workforce needs, it’s a win-win: employers get the skilled talent they need, and workers can begin high-wage, high-growth careers.
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In today’s economy, high school students need more than just a diploma. Modern CTE programs blur the line between high schools, colleges, and the workforce, so students gain the skills, credits, and credentials to succeed after they cross the graduation stage.
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Dual enrollment or “college in high school programs” enable students to earn college credit in high school, improving their likelihood of college enrollment and completion.
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Internships and other work-based learning experiences accelerate learning by enabling students to apply their skills in the real world.
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Data systems—especially statewide longitudinal data systems that connect K-12, postsecondary, and workforce data—are an essential element to any college and career pathways initiative.
Spencer Sherman advises education leaders on building pathways to economic mobility for all students. He has over 15 years of experience in public education roles, from teacher to state policymaker, and is passionate about improving education systems to help students achieve the American Dream. Spencer is an expert on college and career pathways initiatives, federal and state policy analysis, and leveraging AI and data to better serve students. He specializes in working at the intersection of these three areas: helping state leaders develop policies that set students up to thrive in an AI-impacted future workforce.
Spencer began his career serving low-income students as a teacher and administrator in New Orleans public schools. He then worked as the Chief for Innovation at the Rhode Island Department of Education, where he launched many new statewide projects, including a cross-agency career pathways initiative, a student-centered online enrollment platform, and a post-COVID tutoring program. Spencer then moved to nonprofit and consulting roles, supporting initiatives such as Indiana’s high school redesign effort and California’s $500M college and career pathways legislation.
Spencer earned his bachelor’s in political science at Yale University, and his master's in public policy at Harvard Kennedy School.
Spencer now serves as a Principal Consultant at Education First and writes the Pathmaking newsletter.
Let’s work together
To work with us, please see the Education First website.
To connect with us, click the link below.