Industry Leaders Statement
On the need for Decision Education
Signatories
Professor of Management and Psychology, University of Pennsylvania; Best-selling Author
Co-CEO, Ariel Investments; Chairman of the Board, Starbucks
Chief Scientific Officer, Microsoft;
Member, President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology and White House Office of Science and Technology Policy
Nobel Prize Winner, Professor of Psychology and Public Affairs Emeritus, Princeton University; Best-selling Author
In Memorium
Professor of Psychology, Harvard University; Best-selling Author
Senior Director of Behavioral Economics, Google; Former Senior Advisor to the White House; Award-winning Podcast Host
Nobel Prize Winner, Professor of Behavioral Science and Economics, University of Chicago; Best-selling Author
Former Vice Admiral and Director of Naval Intelligence; Decorated Officer
Nobel Prize Winner; Professor of Physics and Education, Stanford University; Author
Stanley McChrystal
Former General, Joint Special Operations Command
What is the Industry Leaders Statement?
The Alliance for Decision Education drafted the Industry Leaders Statement as signal of support from key leaders across a range of industries. It outlines why these leaders are so passionate about Decision Education, and why they pledge their ongoing support and commitment towards our mission to improve lives by empowering students with essential skills and dispositions for making better decisions.
Our lives are shaped by a combination of chance and the quality of our decisions. Happiness, fulfillment, and satisfaction depend in large measure on making rational, informed decisions about every aspect of our lives, including school, career, finances, and relationships. Decades of research have shown that decision-making skills can be learned, yet the teaching and learning of these skills are not emphasized in K-12 curricula. We believe that needs to change.
The need for Decision Education has never been greater.
Today’s students face an unprecedented barrage of messages that shape their decisions with significant long-term impact. Research repeatedly shows that students struggle to differentiate truth from fiction, weigh options, critically evaluate evidence, manage emotions, and avoid unconscious biases. At the same time, employers are increasingly demanding candidates with decision-making and problem-solving skills.
As leaders in business, education, and government, we recognize the ability to make better decisions leads to a more globally competitive workforce, better individual lives, and a better society for all. Students need skills and dispositions to determine what they value, what is true, and what they should do. We must equip students to structure their decisions, think probabilistically, resist cognitive biases, and apply rationality.
We take great pride in supporting the Alliance for Decision Education and its mission to improve lives by empowering students with essential skills and dispositions for making better decisions. We urge all leaders to join us in our commitment to work alongside the Alliance, so that together, we can ensure Decision Education is part of every student’s learning experience.
