Giving Compass' Take:

• Career-connected learning encourages employers and educators to work together to combine classroom instruction and relevant work experience that will lead students on a positive path forward.  

• Making these programs sustainable in the U.S. requires that states sponsor this system that connects all stakeholders in connected learning. How can donors help to make that happen? 

• Learn about the importance of career and technical education. 

Preparing our young people for this massive transition is among the biggest challenges the US education system faces. Yet, too few students are being prepared to work in jobs that offer promising, productive futures.  While roughly 70 percent of jobs require a degree or credential after high school, the US Department of Education estimates that only about 40 percent of US students entering 10th grade go on to earn either a two-year or four-year postsecondary degree. In other words, the current system risks leaving the majority of our young people behind.

We can solve this problem by creating more pathways for more students beyond high school. Maximizing opportunity for all young people will require something more—something like a system similar to the one we’re building in the state of Washington that augments the traditional study-then-work educational system with a broader, more inclusive study-and-work approach to learning.

Known as career-connected learning (CCL), this model has succeeded in other countries.

In this approach, educators and employers work together to combine classroom instruction with relevant real-world experience to give students an array of attractive, academically connected pathways toward fulfilling, high-paying careers. Attaining a four-year college degree immediately after high school will continue to be an appropriate ambition for many young people, but it is also critical to offer multiple affordable career pathways that combine schooling with relevant real-world experience.

Small but promising CCL programs across the United States are already benefiting students and employers alike. But we have found that building successful programs that satisfy the needs of both employers and students demands something new: a state-sponsored CCL system that connects educators, employers, labor leaders, and nonprofits to create and scale local solutions.

Read the full article about career connected learning programs by Gov. Jay Inslee & Abigail Smith  at Stanford Social Innovation Review