A conversation with Emily Morphew, Director of Workforce Strategies at Ascend Indiana
Earlier this year, Ascend Indiana launched a statewide initiative to support regional intermediaries—organizations that play a critical role in connecting schools, employers and community partners to create high-quality work-based learning (WBL) experiences.
Emily Morphew, Ascend’s director of Workforce Strategies, has seen firsthand how intermediaries can strengthen regional coordination, expand access to meaningful career-connected learning and ensure that students and employers alike benefit from well-designed WBL opportunities.
In the following Q&A, Emily explains why intermediaries are essential partners in this work, how they support both educators and employers and what Ascend is doing to equip them for success in communities across Indiana.
What are intermediaries?
Intermediaries are organizations that act as bridges between two groups that need each other but don’t naturally coordinate on their own. They help facilitate connections and align expectations and make collaboration easier. In the context of WBL, intermediaries may help connect employers and schools, translate employer needs into meaningful student experiences and provide coordination that helps partnerships run more smoothly. Their support can ease the burden on both employers and school partners while strengthening opportunities for students.
What types of organizations serve as intermediaries?
When considering an employer-facing intermediary for WBL, there is a wide variety of organizations. These often include regional workforce development boards, nonprofits focused on career pathways or talent development or economic development organizations. We’ve also seen chambers of commerce and education service centers increasingly take on this role.
How can a regional intermediary assist schools and employers with WBL?
From a broad perspective, regional intermediaries help lower friction on both ends, making implementation simpler.
For employers, intermediaries often help engage businesses around shared talent needs and identify where WBL experiences could fit within their organization. They may help employers think through how a student role could be structured, connect them with appropriate school partners and coordinate across multiple education partners so employers are not navigating those relationships on their own. Intermediaries can also support implementation by helping develop training plans, clarify expectations and assisting with the logistics involved in hosting students.
On the school side, intermediaries can help open doors to employers with which the schools might not have existing relationships, expanding the range of available opportunities for students. They may also support schools by sharing tools and best practices, coordinating opportunities across multiple schools and helping ensure WBL experiences align with regional workforce needs.
What types of resources can an intermediary offer to support WBL?
Intermediaries often provide tools that help schools and employers implement WBL more consistently. For example, Ascend created a standardized training plan template that helps align expectations across schools and employers, reducing the need for businesses to adapt to different processes for each student placement.
They may also offer resources such as evaluation forms, supervisor guidance and onboarding materials that help employers understand how to support students in the workplace. In addition, intermediaries can help translate state requirements into clear, practical guidance so schools and employers understand what is needed for an experience to count toward WBL hours.
How can an employer or school find a local intermediary to help with WBL?
Ascend recently published an intermediary directory where both employers and school partners can find a clear front door to engage in WBL.
We find that the biggest barrier isn’t willingness; it’s just figuring out where to start because it feels so overwhelming and complicated. Once schools or employers connect with an experienced intermediary who understands the process, it can make getting started much more manageable.
Is there any intermediary in the state that sticks out to you for their great work?
Yes, I’m considering Hub 19 in Dubois County. It’s a regional collaboration between local school districts, Vincennes University–Jasper, the Patoka Valley Career and Technical Education Cooperative and industry partners, all working together to strengthen the local talent pipeline.
Hub 19 focuses on making career exploration and WBL more visible and accessible for students by connecting them with hands-on experiences with local employers. What stands out is the depth of employer engagement. Local companies aren’t just participating; they are actively helping shape the opportunities so they align with the real workforce needs of the region.
