Florida Philanthropic Network (FPN), through its Education Funders Affinity Group, has announced its support for establishing a statewide goal to have 60% of working-age Floridians possess post-secondary degrees or certifications by the year 2025.
“FPN recognizes that the health and general well-being of Florida’s economy, and of the lives of individual Floridians, are tied directly to the skills attained by our students in post-secondary education,” said David Biemesderfer, President and CEO of Florida Philanthropic Network in a press release.
State and national workforce projections predict that over 60% of Florida jobs will require some form of postsecondary education or training by the year 2020, yet currently only 38% of working-age Floridians hold an associate’s degree or higher. If Florida continues at its current growth rate for increasing post-secondary education attainment, it will have an attainment rate of about 43% in 2025 — far short of the 60% statewide goal. “We all need to figure out ways to step up our efforts — philanthropy included,” Biemesderfer said.
FPN’s Education Funders Affinity Group (EAG) is comprised of FPN members who share an interest in supporting education issues, organizations and needs in Florida. Through the EAG, FPN members are committed to working together to use their full set of resources, beyond their financial support, to achieve the statewide goal of 60% post-secondary attainment by 2025. This will include efforts to increase awareness, serve as neutral conveners, partner with key stakeholders, and address key policy issues required to raise the level of post-secondary attainment in the state.
FPN has released a new position paper that explains its support for a 60% statewide attainment goal in Florida and for related policy issues. The paper can be found on FPN’s website at www.fpnetwork.org. FPN also hosted a webinar discussing the need for a goal earlier this month, a copy of the slides can be found here.
Florida Philanthropic Network is a statewide network of philanthropic organizations working to build philanthropy to build a better Florida. FPN’s nearly 120 members are private independent, corporate and family foundations, community foundations and corporate giving programs — from Miami to Jacksonville; Naples to Pensacola — who hold over $6.5 billion in assets (excluding members located outside Florida) and invest over $430 million annually to improve the quality of life for our residents and communities. FPN’s members share a commitment to promoting philanthropy, fostering collaboration and advancing public policy by Florida, in Florida. For more information, visit http://www.fpnetwork.org/.