This isn't a particularly concrete idea, but I think that the language we use is incredibly important. Several of us here this morning have talked about investment, and you used the word in your question as well.
I think that what happens often is employers and others think of these programs as being a cost that they have to bear rather than an investment that's actually going to have payback for them when they have a better qualified workforce and enough workers to work for them. And I think everybody has a role to play in that. That's like a big public education campaign to get people thinking that it's a small amount of money to put into a program if what you're going to get is a qualified worker who is able to hold down a job. It will address the skill shortages, and it will improve that person's quality of life a whole lot.
So I think that language change is really important. Stop thinking about the cost, and start thinking about the investment and what the benefits are at the end of it.