Lessons Earned Podcast

Season 1: Episode 2

Oren Cass

Oren Cass, author of The Once and Future Worker, says we’ve gone too far in our college-going culture, steering too many students down a postsecondary pathway that only serves about one-third of our population. It’s time, he says, to destigmatize vocational and technical education, to create and fund alternative pathways between high school and the workplace, and to fill millions of jobs that don’t, or shouldn’t, require a college degree.

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About Oren Cass

Oren Cass is the executive director of American Compass, whose mission is to restore an economic orthodoxy that emphasizes the importance of family, community, and industry to the nation’s liberty and prosperity. Prior to founding Compass, he was a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute, where his work on strengthening the labor market addressed issues ranging from the social safety net and environmental regulation to trade and immigration to education and organized labor. Cass regularly writes for the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, National Affairs, and National Review. He is the author of The Once and Future Worker: A Vision for the Renewal of Work in America.

Season 1, Episode 2 Transcript: Download