Governor Ivey Shares Progress Report on Attainment Goal, Alabama Workforce Skills Up

MONTGOMERY – Governor Kay Ivey on Thursday shared that Alabama is making substantial progress toward reaching her postsecondary attainment goal. Also known as Governor Ivey’s Success Plus plan, the attainment goal aims to add 500,000 individuals with postsecondary credentials to the state’s workforce by 2025. The governor is proud to report that since launching the plan in 2018, Alabama has added 214,922 credentials, according to the Center for Regional Economic Competitiveness (CREC). The progress report shows that Alabama’s workforce is skilling up and well on its way to meet the goal of the Success Plus plan.

“Here in Alabama, we are laser-focused on bringing good-paying jobs to the state, and very importantly, we want to ensure we are providing opportunities for Alabamians to be the most equipped for those jobs,” said Governor Ivey. “I am proud of our progress and predict we are well on our way to surpassing the goal of adding 500,000 additional credentialed individuals to our workforce by 2025.”

Governor Ivey, collaborating with AlabamaWorks! and the Alabama Workforce Council, partnered with Credential Engine and the CREC to measure the progress.

“I am extremely proud of the work the Alabama Workforce Council has done in advancing Governor Ivey’s Success Plus initiative and helping Alabamians earn post-secondary credentials that will set them up for success,” said Alabama Workforce Council Chair Tim McCartney. “It is evident we have more work to do to carry this goal to completion, but we are on the right path and have the right leadership with Governor Ivey at the helm.”

The progress report shows that since 2018, Alabama has made progress toward the Success Plus goal of adding 500,000 credentialed adults ages 16 to 64 to the workforce by 2025. Of the more than 200,000 added credentialed individuals, 137,848 newly credentialed individuals were in the 16 to 24 age group, and 38,240 were in the 25 to 64 age group. Governor Ivey is a national leader on workforce development efforts. As she speaks to company officials in this country and around the globe, she consistently touts the state of Alabama’s strong workforce.

“Alabama’s current and future economic growth depends on a highly skilled workforce. That’s why I am so proud of the progress we are making in increasing our postsecondary education attainment goal,” said Alabama Commerce Secretary Greg Canfield. “We are on track to meet our goal, which will result in more Alabamians in the workforce.”

The information included in the Success Plus plan progress report provides a clearer picture of the credential landscape and statewide progress toward the attainment goal. The report also advances transparency and connectivity across credentialing systems.

Beyond grouping by age, another focus was measuring credential attainment by region. Of the progress made since 2018, 44,469 credentials were attained in region 1; 12,045 in region 2; 24,956 in region 3; 38,441 in region 4; 33,155 in region 5; 17,791 in region 6; and 44,065 in region 7.

Broken down by credential, from 2018 to 2021, 145,194 first degrees were attained from public and private postsecondary schools; 33,059 first certificates were attained from public and private postsecondary schools; 1,430 people attained licenses as their first credential; 34,552 attained a certification; and 668 people completed an apprenticeship.

“Success Plus has required focused efforts across multiple state agencies, the private sector and community-based organizations,” said AIDT Executive Director and Deputy Commerce Secretary Ed Castile. “I am proud of the progress we have made thus far, and I am even more excited about the progress we will make between now and 2025.”

Through Governor Ivey’s leadership and focus on carving a path for Alabamians to be highly skilled and successful, the state is well on its way to achieving her Success Plus goal.

###