Vanessa Bennett is a director at the Center for Apprenticeship & Work-Based Learning at JFF. She works to drive equity, inclusion, and access to the workforce for workers and learners from underrepresented populations through policy and systems change. Her work focuses on creating place-based strategies, expanding career pathways, and scaling innovative models for young adults and rural workers.

Her skills and areas of expertise include:

• Apprenticeship and work-based learning
• Public policy
• Program design and implementation
• Rural economic development
• Youth development

Before joining JFF, Bennett led national service initiatives, provided technical assistance on apprenticeship, and informed policy efforts at YouthBuild USA.

Educational background:

• Bachelor’s degree in history, University of New Hampshire
• Master’s degree in public policy, Northeastern University