How do you pitch giving back as good business? And how do you make a financial services company care—really care—about making a dent in early childhood education, an issue that doesn’t show up anywhere on the balance sheet? These were the questions that the leaders of the PNC Foundation had to answer if PNC was going to play a huge role in improving early childhood education in the communities they serve. The research was clear and irrefutable. The benefits of quality early childhood education are not only social, but economic, with a benefit as high as $16 for every dollar invested. And today’s preschoolers are tomorrow’s workforce.

Chambers of Commerce across the country have a unique challenge - to protect and promote the local business community and support their needs as they face the nation's workforce challenges. The New Braunfels Chamber in Texas reflects on what worked for them over the past year of actively working to build a community system that would solve for some of those challenges and gives us four lessons learned in the progress.

By working to close the gender gap in STEM-related fields and foster a long overdue leadership pipeline in Dallas, the Girl Scouts STEM Center of Excellence is a shining example of the positive educational outcomes that happen when businesses engage with their communities.

Due to workplace projections, it is critical that employers partner with educators in order to grow talent, bridge the gap between our current and future STEM workforce, and support students in choosing STEM as a career.