Durable Skills. These lifelong competencies—like critical thinking, collaboration, adaptability, and communication—fuel success in school, career, and life. For the Collaborative for Teaching and Learning (CTL), the move to adopt the language of Durable Skills isn’t simply a shift in semantics. It’s a recommitment to the values that have guided our work for over two decades, and a recognition that now is the most critical moment to elevate, align, and integrate these skills across systems, especially in Kentucky.
What Are Durable Skills? Why Do They Matter?
High school math students work together to organize their position as part of their global warming debate.
In the professional landscape, Durable Skills play a pivotal role in shaping long-term success. These skills lay a sturdy foundation for individuals to thrive and adapt in a rapidly evolving work environment. By honing Durable Skills, individuals enhance their employability and resilience, ensuring they remain valuable assets to any organization.
Durable Skills are the modern evolution of what were once called “soft skills”—but the name undersells them. According to America Succeeds, Durable Skills are in 7 of the 10 most-requested competencies in job postings, and employers seek them nearly four times more than top technical skills. These include communication, critical thinking, creativity, leadership, character, and growth mindset—skills that persist even as industries change and technologies evolve. They’re not only the foundation for professional success—they’re also essential for navigating civic life, relationships, and personal growth.
Why Now? Kentucky and the National Moment
States across the country are actively embedding Durable Skills into graduate profiles, career readiness frameworks, and state accountability systems. Indiana, Virginia, Iowa, and Colorado are leading efforts to formally define and assess these skills, while national entities like the Lumina Foundation have outlined ambitious goals that depend on these competencies (Lumina Foundation). Lumina’s “Goal 2040” aims for 75% of working-age adults to hold degrees or credentials of value, and emphasizes that education must go beyond academic knowledge to foster curiosity, discipline, and critical thinking.
Here in Kentucky, the moment is especially ripe. The Kentucky Department of Education’s new accountability model elevates “Vibrant Learning” and “Local Innovation” and encourages districts to develop a Portrait of a Learner (PoL)—a shared vision of the knowledge, skills, and dispositions students need to thrive. Kentucky’s model highlights competencies like Critical Thinking, Productive Collaboration, Creative Contribution, and Effective Communication—each of which directly aligns with the Durable Skills frameworks.
CTL’s Longstanding Commitment to Durable Skills
CTL has championed the essence of durable skills since its founding. Our Postsecondary Success Skills Model provided schools with explicit tools to teach habits of mind like time management, notetaking, critical thinking, and effective goal setting-well before the term “Durable Skills” gained popularity (Postsecondary Success Skills Model).
Take, for instance, our work with innovative districts like Danville Independent and Frankfort Independent, where we partnered to implement skills-based learning and cultivate a learner-centered environment. Those innovative efforts centered on the same durable competencies that employers demand. Other examples illustrate how deeply we’ve been investing in these skills for over two decades:
- “The Value of Struggle” affirms how resilience and a growth mindset are cultivated through authentic learning experiences, not shortcuts (Value of Struggle).
- “Formative Assessment as a Tool” demonstrates how self-awareness and persistence grow through meaningful feedback, goal setting, and reflection (Formative Assessment).
- “Unlocking Student Potential: The Power of Rubrics in the Classroom” underscores the importance of transparency and agency, helping students see and own their growth in durable competencies (Rubrics in the Classroom).
These blog posts aren’t about buzzwords. They reflect years of CTL’s grounded, research-informed work in helping educators teach what matters most.
Why We’re Adopting the Language of Durable Skills
So why use the phrase Durable Skills now?
- Clarity and Common Language: “Soft skills” was always an inadequate label. “Durable Skills” reflects the enduring value of these competencies and connects CTL’s work to a larger, national movement in workforce and education.
- Alignment with Policy and Practice: Kentucky’s Portrait of a Learner framework, Lumina’s Goal 2040, America Succeeds Durable Skills Framework, and national economic priorities all explicitly name these skills as central to student success after graduation. CTL’s adoption of this language enhances alignment, funding opportunities, and coherence across systems.
- Powerful Messaging for Opportunity: Durable Skills are portable across jobs and sectors, and research shows they drive upward mobility, especially for students who may not immediately pursue a four-year degree. Adopting this language affirms CTL’s belief that every learner deserves access to a future-ready education.
A Framework for Districts Ready to Act
To support districts in designing systems that prioritize durable skills, CTL offers an in-depth Profile of a Learner Framework and Evaluation Rubric. This tool helps districts assess their progress across phases including:
- Co-Creation and Local Grounding (stakeholder engagement, equity integration),
- Competency Alignment (grade-level skill progressions, observable student outcomes),
- Instructional Integration and Student Ownership (classroom strategies, pathway & extracurricular integration student reflection, and goal setting),
- Credentialing and Skill Development (providing students usable, transferable credentials).
- Impact Monitoring and Continuous Improvement (monitoring for continuous improvement).
Rather than prescribing one model, the rubric supports continuous improvement, inviting districts to build capacity over time. Whether you’re launching your Portrait of a Learner or refining an existing one, CTL’s tools and coaching are built to meet you where you are.
Looking Ahead: From Vision to Practice
Adopting the language of Durable Skills is not the end—it’s the beginning of a deeper transformation. At CTL, we believe systems must intentionally design for what they value. That means explicitly teaching skills like decision making, helping students manage time and reflect on progress, and equipping educators to deliver instruction that builds durable competencies (i.e. Decision Making, Time Management, Critical Thinking.
These are not just skills for the workplace—they are the human tools learners need to engage with the world, adapt to change, and thrive in any future they choose.
Refining and Reframing Our Postsecondary Success Skills Model
Consider this blog post the introduction to our next phase for our PSSM model. Be on the lookout for our relaunch of our PSSM work. We are in the process of reframing our focus and we invite district leaders to begin this work with us. Start by scheduling a free strategy session with our team to explore how CTL can help your district co-create a learner profile that places Durable Skills at the center.
Because the future isn’t just about knowledge. It’s about the skills that last.
