Every. Student. Prepared.
INVESTING IN THE
Workforce of Tomorrow
Aligned is dedicated to strengthening education and workforce development in Kansas and Missouri. We bring together businesses, educators, and policymakers to craft practical solutions for reform.
Latest Policy Updates & Research
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Weekly Update — 04/10/26
Many of Aligned’s priority bills become law This originally appeared in Aligned’s weekly newsletter. Want future updates in your inbox? Sign up today. As lawmakers returned to Topeka for the final days of session, several of Aligned’s priority bills ranging across…
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Missouri Teacher Workforce Series: Part 1
Rising Novices, Growing Veterans, and a Shrinking Middle Missouri’s teacher workforce is not as stable as it looks. This first report in Aligned’s Missouri Teacher Workforce Series examines how the composition of the state’s educator workforce has shifted over the…
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Weekly Update — 04/03/26
This originally appeared in Aligned’s weekly newsletter. Want future updates in your inbox? Sign up today. After months of major design questions, members of the Missouri School Funding Modernization Task Force began to converge on key design choices that will…
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Missouri’s Teacher Supply Hourglass: Why the Missing Middle Matters
This blog provides an overview of Aligned’s Missouri’s Classroom Teacher Experience Series, a three-part analysis examining how shifts in experience, placement, and credentials are reshaping the state’s educator pipeline. Over the next three weeks, we will release the full reports…
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Big news for afterschool programs in Missouri! 📣
Grant applications are officially OPEN for organizations serving school-age children, and this is a great opportunity to expand the impact of your program.
Whether you’re focused on academic enrichment or creating safe, engaging spaces for kids after school, funding is available through the 21st Century Community Learning Centers Grant and the School Age Community Grant.
These programs play a huge role in supporting learning, development, and well-being beyond the classroom, and this is your chance to grow that impact.
Deadline to apply is April 24, 2026 at 1:00 p.m. ⏰
Questions? Reach out to afterschool@dese.mo.gov
Let’s keep showing up for Missouri’s kids after the school day ends! 🫶
#childcareawaremo #supportingfamilies #missourichildcare #missourifamilies #ccamo
Kansas Employers: Funding Available Now
conta.cc
Email from Aligned Thousands of Dollars Available to Kansas Employers Don’t miss funding opportunities to recruit, train, and retain your workforce. April deadlines are approaching quickly. …
The more you do everything for someone, the less they learn to do it themselves.
Education works the same way.
Too much control limits ownership.
Too little structure loses direction.
Real accountability is knowing when to step in and when to step back.
The Three Faces of Education Accountability
www.nationalaffairs.com
Education debates often appeal to accountability. But what does that mean in practice? Results-based accountability, marketplace accountability, and professional accountability are all ways of holding…
Missouri’s teacher pipeline problem isn’t about shortages.
We’re hiring teachers but not keeping them long enough to become experienced educators.
The real issue is the disappearing middle and students feel it. Read more in our recent blog post:
wearealigned.org/missouris-teacher-supply-hourglass/
