I met Karen Pittman, founder, and CEO of the Forum for Youth Investment, when she spoke at a Washington University social work school event. I knew right away that we needed to work together. It didn't take her too long to feel the same way.
Less than a year later, I had left local work to join her team. Together, we co-directed a multi-year research project, dubbed "The Readiness Project," funded by the Ford Foundation. We called our cumulative piece Ready by Design: The Science (and Art) of Youth Readiness.
That partnership, and the research that resulted, became the cornerstone of Making It. I was lucky to have Karen pen the foreword to the book and luckier to continue our work together. She and I believe that readiness--for college, work, and life--should be viewed as a fundamental right, available to every kid in America.
The other day, we sat down to talk about our shared history, passions, and perspectives on what today's kids need to be ready for the world -- as it is and as it will be.
Please take a listen and let me know what you think. (~1 hr)