This paper briefly examines three publications that lay out strategies for U.S. economic competitiveness in the future: the U.S. Department of Education's report "America 2000: An Education Strategy," in response to the President's message of April 1991; the report of the Secretary of Labor's Commission on Achieving Necessary Skills (SCANS), "What Work Requires of Schools," June 1991; and the report of the Commission on the Skills of the American Workforce, "America's Choice: High Skills or Low Wages!" June 1990. The paper aims to: (1) present the fundamental ideas among these three cornerstone work force preparation strategies; (2) identify their common ground as well as the areas where they build upon one another or part company; and (3) set up a crosswalk as a way of looking at work force preparation strategies so that other papers and proposals can be added for comparison and contrast. After a brief introduction, the paper focuses upon the following employment and training issues: Who authorized the three strategies? and How does each of the strategies view its mandates, basic recommendations, standards or competencies, relationship to the Job Training Partnership Act and the Employment Service, financing, and the role of business? The paper then presents, in sequence, summaries of each paper's basic position on the issues. Some editorial comment about relationships is included. Sources for further information on the three strategy papers are listed. (KC)