Automation won't replace metal fabricators' need for skilled labor, so they'll need to transfer knowledge, hire broadly and provide robust training, according to a panel discussion last year. Manufacturers need to "put high-tech equipment in schools and into the hands of students, and get them using what the industry uses now, not what it used 20 years ago," said Rob Tessier of Airgas.

Advanced Placement participation rates in rural schools trend lower than suburban and urban schools, according to a report from the Education Commission of the States and the College Board. The report offers strategies to help improve AP access in rural areas.

Alternative pathways programs could be key in helping nontraditional students earn a degree or certificate to decrease the training gap, according to two reports from Tyton Partners. The authors say programs must focus on career training, have clear enrollment policies and connections to job opportunities to be effective.

Employers have indicated they value both technical know-how and qualities such as work ethic and strong communication skills, researchers Matthew Hora, Ross Benbow and Amanda Oleson write in this commentary. As national policymakers hone their focus on vocational training programs and pathways to careers, they should bear in mind the workplace skills supported by general education, liberal arts education and active-learning techniques, the researchers suggest.

Cities such as Houston, New York and Columbus, Ohio, have thousands of open middle-skill jobs but lack trained workers, data suggest. Chauncy Lennon of JPMorgan Chase suggests ways thought leaders can coordinate workforce-development efforts, including by collecting up-to-date labor data and creating training programs that align education with employers' needs.