Anthony (Tony) Landis
Founder, The Education and Career Solutions Laboratory (TECSOL)
Professional Bio
Anthony (Tony) Landis is a nationally recognized leader in education and workforce strategy with more than three decades of experience designing systems, shaping policy, and leading initiatives that connect education to real economic opportunity.
As Founder of The Education and Career Solutions Laboratory (TECSOL), Tony partners with state agencies, secondary and postsecondary institutions, workforce boards, nonprofits, and philanthropic organizations to design and implement aligned education-to-career pathways. His work focuses on career and technical education (CTE) system design, dual enrollment and credit mobility, workforce and labor-market alignment, and large-scale technical assistance that supports coordinated, cross-sector action.
Tony’s career spans leadership roles at both the state and national levels. Most recently, he served as a Director at Jobs for the Future (JFF), where he provided strategic guidance and subject matter expertise on career pathways, credential quality, and workforce alignment to state agencies and national initiatives.
Prior to his national work, Tony spent over two decades at the Ohio Department of Higher Education, where he served as Senior Director overseeing the state’s Postsecondary Career and Technical Education portfolio. In this role, he managed more than $30 million in federal, state, and philanthropic investments and led initiatives impacting Ohio’s 50 adult career technical centers, 23 community colleges, and 14 universities.
During his tenure, Tony played a key role in advancing statewide systems that continue to shape Ohio’s education and workforce landscape. His contributions include helping to design Ohio’s secondary-to-postsecondary credit transfer system, enabling CTE students to earn college credit within their career pathways, and leading or supporting major national initiatives such as Lumina Foundation’s Credit When It’s Due reverse transfer initiative, the Institute of Higher Education Policy’s Win-Win Project, the National Governors Association’s Academy for Career Technical Education, and Ohio’s One-Year Option.
Earlier in his career, Tony served at Central State University, an Historically Black College and University, where he held leadership roles in student development and student activities, focusing on student engagement, leadership development, and student success.
Across his career, Tony has contributed to national and state advisory boards, delivered keynote presentations and conference sessions, and helped shape policy and practice across education and workforce systems. He is also a writer and thought contributor on career pathways, workforce alignment, and learning-based work.
What distinguishes Tony’s work is his ability to bridge strategy and implementation—helping organizations move from vision to coordinated action that produces measurable results. He is known for aligning stakeholders, building system infrastructure, and translating complex ideas into practical solutions.
Equally important, Tony brings a lived-experience perspective to his work. As a first-generation college student who faced pivotal decisions about his future without a clear roadmap, he understands firsthand the gap between how systems are designed and how individuals experience them. This perspective informs his approach—ensuring that the systems he helps build are not only effective, but relevant and accessible.
Tony is a trusted advisor, speaker, and thought partner for leaders seeking to build coherent, equitable, and future-ready education and workforce systems that deliver meaningful impact.
Ready to explore working with Tony or bringing TECSOL to your organization?