Over the last decade, cuts in federal workforce development and educational funding have deeply impacted the ability of the nation’s education and training providers to serve low-income, lower skilled, first-generation students. Additionally, recent changes to Pell, including the loss of the Ability to Benefit provision, have made it harder to cover tuition costs for many students. There is no indication that reductions in funding are a temporary development. In this emerging environment, the funding that is necessary to support new and innovative programs must now be pulled from not one or two major sources, but from multiple smaller sources, each with specific goals, target populations, and performance indicators. This approach - braiding funding streams - is a critical component to the successful implementation and scale and sustainability of integrated career pathways
