Dustin Lynch
performed Wednesday (Sept. 19) in Washington, D.C., during the official
launch of CMT Empowering Education, a pro-social education program initiated by CMT and its parent company, Viacom. The multi-faceted
campaign challenges CMT viewers to pursue post-secondary education with the creation of the website --
cmtempoweringeducation.com
-- a one-stop resource providing information on schools, career paths, motivation and financial resources. "There are more
than 3.7 million job openings in the U.S., and many of those remain open because applicants don't have the necessary skills,"
said CMT senior director of public affairs Lucia Folk. "CMT saw an opportunity to create a campaign for our viewers that could
narrow the skills gap and improve their quality of life by providing them with a simple, easy to use resource to help them
map out their journey to an education and greater job opportunities." The launch event at the National Cable & Telecommunications
Association included a panel discussion about closing the skills gap through innovative partnerships and featured some of
the foremost minds in post-secondary education and workforce development. Lynch, who promised his family he would earn a college
degree before pursuing a career in music, shared his story with the group and performed his current Top 10 single,
"Cowboys
and Angels," and other songs from his self-titled debut album that recently debut at No. 1 on
Billboard's country
albums chart.
