The CRC Consortium In January 2004, with leadership from Virginia, seven states (TN, WV, KY, DC, MD, NC and VA) formed the Career Readiness Certificate Consortium (CRCC). No state was asked to contribute funds or in any way commit resources to the effort. The idea of a Consortium was conceived to provide a support mechanism for and practical help to all states, particularly for those just embarking on the project. The CRCC was comprised of states in very different stages of development of a portable skills credential based on Workkeys®. For example, Kentucky had been issuing its own Kentucky Employability Certificate for a year, Virginia was quickly advancing to deployment of its Career Readiness Certifcate, and Maryland and DC were only just beginning to look at WorkKeys® as the language of skill sets. All other states fell somewhere in between. One benefit that accrued from the CRCC was that speakers from "advanced" states were available to visit key stakeholders in beginning states. By the end of 2004, another 5 states had asked to join the CRCC, and this interest and enthusiasm has continued into 2005. At the last meeting of the CRCC in May 2005, 30 states were represented. As of October 2005, the total number of states in the CRCC is 38. The matrix below shows the current status (January 2006) of the CRCC. CRC deployed: CRC in progress: Interested in CRC: Kentucky Indiana Virginia Louisiana Missouri North Carolina Oklahoma Alabama Tennessee North Dakota South Carolina Wyoming District of Columbia New Mexico West Virginia Iowa Nevada Washington Kansas Ohio Colorado Michigan California Delaware Maryland Rhode Island Illinois Hawaii Montana Minnesota Oregon Idaho Mississippi Florida New York Alaska Arizona Nebraska Georgia Arkansas The size of the CRCC is now so significant that it is generating national interest. Representatives of the USDOL, SHRM, and the ACTE attended the May meeting, and articles on this powerful new credential are being published in professional journals. There is considerable variation on how each state is deploying its credential. In some states, the CRC is state-sanctioned, authorized by the state WIB and signed by the governor. In others, the state technical or community college system is taking the lead. In several states, the initiative is regional or local.