The Greater Peoria region renewed its efforts to study economic development, including the region’s talent ecosystem, which includes representatives from elementary, secondary, and postsecondary institutions and business‐centric talent development organizations.

In the spring of 2015, the Mayor of Peoria invited executives from Peoria Public Schools, Peoria Federation of Teachers, CEO Council, Peoria Chamber of Commerce, Illinois Central College, Illinois Student Assistance Commission, Illinois Pathways Initiative, and Greater Peoria Workforce Alliance to participate in a conversation with the Illinois Governor’s office to consider the possibility of joining the Pathways to Prosperity Network. The participants agreed to form a Peoria Pathways to Prosperity (PP2P) team to study education to careers challenges facing students matriculating through the Peoria Public Schools and to recommend improvements.

In the years since, this work has evolved to scale regionally, connecting multiple employers and school districts across five counties to align career pathways to the Postsecondary and Workforce Readiness Act framework. This work is now coordinated by the Emerging Workforce committee of the Workforce Alliance, alongside two other population-based strategies focused on upskilling working adults and supporting the success of adults with multiple barriers. These committees, along with the K-12-focused Emerging Workforce team, are working to ensure that they’re utilizing the P-20 framework for moving the region toward the 60 by 25 goal in the communities.