Hutt – NCDPI: Skills for the Future Cultivating and Measuring Durable Skills for Sustainable Success in Work and Society

Principal Investigator: Ethan Hutt
Funding Agency: North Carolina Department of Public Instruction

Abstract

The current system of measuring student success, centered around seat-time and GPA, misses a broader set of capabilities that truly matter in life and work. Employers consistently seek durable skills like collaboration and adaptability, yet these are not captured in traditional assessments.

The Skills for the Future project addresses this gap by helping educators and systems validate and elevate the broader competencies that students need to thrive, particularly students who are historically underserved or who gain valuable experience outside of academic settings.

The Skills for the Future Grant: Cultivating and Measuring Durable Skills for Sustainable Success in Work and Society is a $4 million U.S. Department of Education initiative led by the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction (NCDPI) in partnership with ETS, AASA/Battelle for Kids, and the Carnegie Foundation. This pioneering effort supports the development of tools and assessments that promote essential “durable skills” such as collaboration, critical thinking, communication, adaptability, and responsibility, and is aligned with the NC Portrait of a Graduate (PoG) skills.

By leveraging AI-powered analytics, performance tasks, and real-world evidence from inside and outside the classroom, this grant aims to pilot a scalable, student-centered measurement system that complements traditional transcripts with skill-based insights.