Steve Taylor
Director and Senior Fellow, Future of Work at Stand Together Trust
Dr. Steven Taylor is the Director and Senior Fellow for the Future of Work at Stand Together Trust. He leads the investment and partnership strategy and builds issue-focused coalitions to educate policymakers on reforms that empower and motivate all individuals to leverage their skills and education to pursue meaningful work and contribute to a vibrant democratic society.
His career spans roles in public and private higher education and workforce and organizational development. In July 2024, Taylor was appointed by Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin to serve a 4-year term on the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV), the Commonwealth’s coordinating body for higher education.
In 2019, Taylor founded ED2WORK® to help postsecondary institutions, states, workforce intermediaries, and employers address the critical needs of adult and working learners. Between 2019 and 2021, he held affiliated roles as senior adviser on upskilling at Greater Washington Partnership and managing consultant of the National Task Force on the Transfer and Award of Credit at the American Council on Education (ACE).
Before launching ED2WORK, Taylor directed national programs and initiatives at ACE focused on teaching and learning transformation, alternative credit and credentials, credit for prior learning, and quality assurance. He was the principal investigator on three major postsecondary education practice and research grants to advance teaching effectiveness, competency- and work-based learning, and build flexible credentialing pathways. Between 2014 and 2020, he taught and developed courses on organizational development, training and development, and experiential learning at Wilmington University (DE).
Early in his career, Taylor led and secured funding for the first Texas Pre-Freshman Engineering Program (TexPREP) in the Dallas-Fort Worth region, a pre-college summer enrichment program for middle and high school students to study STEM in a college setting. He also worked in academic and student affairs at the University of North Texas and Dallas County Community College District. During his time at the Regulatory Affairs Professionals Society, he led teams of subject matter experts to develop training and certification courses for healthcare regulators and professionals.
As a first-generation college student and Pell Grant recipient, he is passionate about expanding educational opportunities for underserved learners and improving the value and relevance of education and credentials. Taylor began his postsecondary education journey at Mt. San Jacinto College in southern California, where he earned two associate of arts degrees before transferring to Texas A&M University, Commerce where he graduated with a bachelor's in health education and political science and a master's in training and development. More than a decade later, he earned his doctorate in business administration (D.B.A.) from Wilmington University in Delaware, where his research focused on employee motivation and engagement in performance improvement efforts.
Steve Taylor
Director and Senior Fellow, Future of Work at Stand Together Trust
Dr. Steven Taylor is the Director and Senior Fellow for the Future of Work at Stand Together Trust. He leads the investment and partnership strategy and builds issue-focused coalitions to educate policymakers on reforms that empower and motivate all individuals to leverage their skills and education to pursue meaningful work and contribute to a vibrant democratic society.
His career spans roles in public and private higher education and workforce and organizational development. In July 2024, Taylor was appointed by Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin to serve a 4-year term on the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV), the Commonwealth’s coordinating body for higher education.
In 2019, Taylor founded ED2WORK® to help postsecondary institutions, states, workforce intermediaries, and employers address the critical needs of adult and working learners. Between 2019 and 2021, he held affiliated roles as senior adviser on upskilling at Greater Washington Partnership and managing consultant of the National Task Force on the Transfer and Award of Credit at the American Council on Education (ACE).
Before launching ED2WORK, Taylor directed national programs and initiatives at ACE focused on teaching and learning transformation, alternative credit and credentials, credit for prior learning, and quality assurance. He was the principal investigator on three major postsecondary education practice and research grants to advance teaching effectiveness, competency- and work-based learning, and build flexible credentialing pathways. Between 2014 and 2020, he taught and developed courses on organizational development, training and development, and experiential learning at Wilmington University (DE).
Early in his career, Taylor led and secured funding for the first Texas Pre-Freshman Engineering Program (TexPREP) in the Dallas-Fort Worth region, a pre-college summer enrichment program for middle and high school students to study STEM in a college setting. He also worked in academic and student affairs at the University of North Texas and Dallas County Community College District. During his time at the Regulatory Affairs Professionals Society, he led teams of subject matter experts to develop training and certification courses for healthcare regulators and professionals.
As a first-generation college student and Pell Grant recipient, he is passionate about expanding educational opportunities for underserved learners and improving the value and relevance of education and credentials. Taylor began his postsecondary education journey at Mt. San Jacinto College in southern California, where he earned two associate of arts degrees before transferring to Texas A&M University, Commerce where he graduated with a bachelor's in health education and political science and a master's in training and development. More than a decade later, he earned his doctorate in business administration (D.B.A.) from Wilmington University in Delaware, where his research focused on employee motivation and engagement in performance improvement efforts.