Our guest this month, Dr. Amy Loyd, is the director of the Pathways to Prosperity Network, a coalition of nine states including NC. Pathways to Prosperity is a partnership between Jobs for the Future and Harvard University’s School of Education. Anyone interested in education's link to economic development owes it themselves to read Harvard University's excellent Pathways to Prosperity report. When you read the report, you'll find it underscores something we've known in Catawba County for quite some time: that "education beyond high school is the passport to the American Dream" and that, in addition to academics, we must ensure that our students graduate career-ready so that they will be able to succeed in the competitive workplace that awaits them.  Many of the recommendations in the report are strikingly similar to CVCC's own Education Matters program. For more information on the program and how your business can become an Education Matters partner, click on the links below.   ·      Amy Loyd bio link: http://www.gse.harvard.edu/news-impact/2012/05/study-break-amy-loyd-ed-l-d-candidate/ ·      Pathways to Prosperity report: http://www.gse.harvard.edu/news_events/features/2011/Pathways_to_Prosperity_Feb2011.pdf ·      Pathways to Prosperity Network: http://www.gse.harvard.edu/news-impact/2012/06/pathways-to-prosperity-network-launches/ ·      Jobs for the Future: www.jff.org   ·      Education Matters web site: www.educationmattersincatawba.org ·      Education Matters information packet: http://educationmattersincatawba.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Education_Matters_CV_Information_Packet.pdf ·      Education Matters application: http://educationmattersincatawba.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Education_Matters_Business_Application.pdf