Narratives about work in the American South have often centered on attracting business through lower labor costs, restrictions on unionization, and deregulation. The Southern economic development model, as this approach has come to be known, promised broad growth and prosperity.

That prosperity has not materialized for most. Many workers and communities in the South have been left behind, with some regions experiencing poverty rates well above the national average.

Narratives shape public perception, policy, and practice. They can also be challenged and changed. Across the South today, workers, business owners, and communities are advancing a new vision, reframing what opportunity and good work look like and who gets to share in economic success.

This was the first of four conversations with members of the Aspen Institute’s Job Quality Fellowship who are working in the South. We’ll examine narrative challenges around work and opportunity, highlight strategies for change, and explore how to amplify approaches rooted in worker dignity, quality jobs, and community wealth-building.

In this conversation, Haley Glover — senior director of UpSkill America at the Aspen Institute — speaks with Molly Dodge and Jennifer Gasiorek — leaders from Ivy Tech Community College — about RAND's recent report on the college's Achieve Your Degree (AYD) program. They discuss the importance of employer-supported education, the motivation behind the AYD, what RAND's evaluation tells us about the impact of this work.

For more information on the RAND report, check out, "Employers as Partners in the Success of Working Adult Learners: The Achieve Your Degree Program": https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RRA3681-1.html

To learn more about Ivy Tech, visit: https://www.ivytech.edu/

For more from UpSkill America, visit: https://www.aspeninstitute.org/programs/upskill-america/

Since the mid-1900s, the nine-to-five work schedule has often been viewed as the standard. For many workers, this schedule has never worked. Parenting and other caregiving responsibilities, health challenges, the pursuit of education and skills, existing employment, and other factors mean many people do not have a lot of predictability and consistency in their availability. Some may only be able to work a few hours a week and may not know week to week when that can happen. And yet, many obviously need to work to get by and meet their basic needs. While app-based platforms have often been heralded for providing the flexibility workers in these situations need, these jobs have often perpetuated low wages and low job quality standards.

In this event — hosted by the Aspen Institute Economic Opportunities Program on January 21, 2026 — we explore how Workforce Investment Boards, labor unions, and businesses are adapting to this context and striving to ensure that those who need a flexible and adaptable work arrangement don’t have to endure low quality jobs and low wages.

Our speakers include Marcy Chong (Director, Service Employees International Union), Minsun Ji (Executive Director, Rocky Mountain Employee Ownership Center; Executive Director, Drivers Cooperative-Colorado), Wingham Rowan (Project Lead, Beyond Jobs), Nick Schultz (Consultant; Former Executive Director, Pacific Gateway Workforce Investment Network), and moderator Matt Helmer (Director, Job Quality and Worker Well-Being, Economic Opportunities Program, The Aspen Institute).

For more information about this event, including a transcript, speaker bios, and additional resources, visit our website.

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This event is part of our Job Quality in Practice series.