"Pathways Research" issue (February)

A newsletter (for adults) about career readiness (for kids).

Dear Readers,

I’m excited to share with you some groundbreaking research that we, together with Jobs for the Future (JFF), released this month. We’ve long known that nondegree pathways from education to the workforce hold promise for leveling the educational and workforce playing fields in our country. Our new research confirms that diverse options—like apprenticeships, microcredentials, internships, bootcamps, and certification programs—are of great interest to students, parents, and educators. These pathways are shown to boost peoples’ employability, earning power, skills, and confidence. Yet, the survey reveals that most people still know little about them, and adults haven’t felt equipped to explore them with the young people in their lives. (Read the story and find the link to the report, or, read Inside Higher Ed’s coverage of the report.) Taking this research a step further, we worked with JFF to build a Pathfinder Guide and Checklist that gives parents, students and educators a practical starting point for conversations about nondegree pathways. (Get the guide.)

This month is also Career and Technical Education (CTE) month. I’ve been inspired to see so many stories about states building stronger links between education and the workforce. For example, the EquipMS Grant program in Mississippi is giving dozens of schools the chance to modernize, replace, or enhance their CTE programs. (Read the story.) The New Jersey Council of County Vocational-Technical Schools (NJCCVTS) has published an impressive fact sheet about the value of CTE across the state’s districts, which can serve as inspiration for any state looking to boost its own CTE initiatives. (Read the fact sheet.) And, a national initiative between public schools and health systems is looking to create healthcare-centric high schools around the country that can see students graduate into lucrative careers in the field. (Read the story.)

At ASA, we have entered into a 10-year strategic alliance with the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship to give people in underserved communities increased access to entrepreneurship education—an important aspect of career readiness. (Read the story.) We’ve also established an innovation fellowship to improve career readiness outcomes for teens; proposals are welcome through the end of April. (Learn about it.)

Finally, below is a list of upcoming events and recaps of recent panel presentations that elevate critical conversations in the youth career readiness space.

SXSW EDU (Austin, March 4-7, 2024 - Learn more)
Transform (Wynn, Las Vegas, March 11-13, 2024 - Learn more)
Webinar: Success Redefined: How Gen Z Is Redefining Success Through Nondegree Paths (March 14, 2024 at 1:00 PM - Register here)
ASU+GSV Summit (San Diego, April 14-17, 2024 - Learn more)
If You See It, You Can be It: My Conversation with Ramona Schindelheim on the WorkingNation Podcast (Read the recap)
The Credentialing Conversation: Four Sound Bites (Read the recap)

Sincerely,

Jean

P.S. - If you’d like to reach me directly, I’d love to hear from you. Email me at press@asa.org