The GitLab Foundation, the philanthropic arm of GitLab, Inc., a development, security, and ops platform, has announced a $2.9 million grant to Jobs for the Future (JFF) in collaboration with the Burning Glass Institute.

The grant will be used to significantly expand the Educational Quality Outcomes Standards (EQOS) as a tool to help workers, learners, employers, and policy makers make sense of a rapidly growing landscape of postsecondary credentials. JFF and the Burning Glass Institute will collaborate to expand the EQOS framework to measure education and training programs based on employment and earnings outcomes and incorporate new measures of racial, gender, and income equity, as well as create consumer- and employer-friendly applications that make it easier for job seekers and employers in the United States to assess education and training programs.

According to research by the Burning Glass Institute, despite persistent talent shortages, many employers have clung to degree requirements for job seekers. While that is starting to change, the lack of an effective credentialing infrastructure is slowing the progress of the skills-based hiring movement.

“We’re seeing an increased interest in and recognition of the powerful role that career-focused training programs can play in helping working adults in low-wage jobs chart pathways to family-sustaining careers, quickly,” said JFF president and CEO Maria Flynn. “EQOS has offered providers and policymakers an important framework for defining quality outcomes. Now, through the support of the GitLab Foundation and in collaboration with the Burning Glass Institute, we turn our attention to offering learners and employers greater transparency as they navigate the myriad of postsecondary options available.”

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