Resource: Case Study: ElevateEdAZ
How a Chamber of Commerce is Bridging Education and Industry
Arizona is creating jobs faster than its schools are preparing students to fill them. In 2020, the state was forecasting 60,000 new semiconductor jobs, yet Greater Phoenix high schools offered only one manufacturing pathway, and it served just 24 students. To help close that gap, the Greater Phoenix Chamber Foundation launched ElevateEdAZ.
The initiative aligns high school with workforce demand so that Arizona students are prepared for college and careers, whatever their background or zip code.
ElevateEdAZ now supports career and technical education (CTE) in 21 high schools. It helped 494 students take part in internships in 2026, and its partner schools increased dual enrollment by 15 percent in 2024. ESG has partnered with ElevateEdAZ since 2022 through Accelerate ED. This spotlight brief looks at how ElevateEdAZ built that work, the challenges it still faces, and what other chambers can learn from its approach. Highlights include:
- Building lasting employer partnerships, not one-off transactions
- Placing college and career coaches in every partner high school
- Building dual enrollment into CTE pathways to speed up degree completion
- Using the Chamber’s policy role to secure funding and more flexible seat-time rules
The brief closes with practical ways any chamber can take on intermediary roles, drawn from the Framework for Effective Employer Intermediaries. Chambers can adopt the roles that fit their community without copying the ElevateEdAZ model in full.
