Students who have a longer career exploration runway, starting as early as middle school, are better positioned to make the right decisions along their education journey to put them on a path to life-long economic success and personal fulfillment. Yet to be most effective, early career exploration must not be one-and-done activities conducted in silos within middle school but instead connect to student experiences, including work-based learning, as they transition to and through high school. A recent 50-state scan of middle school career exploration policy and practice shows that while 90% of states now have requirements in place for districts and schools to facilitate middle school career exploration, there is much room for improvement in creating intentional, clear connections between middle school career exploration and high school career experimentation. This session will spotlight tips and strategies, such as career courses, ICAPs and career counselors, for creating comprehensive middle school career exploration programming that builds on elementary school standards as well as links to high school college and career readiness targets.
Panelists:
- Julie Lammers, Senior VP, Advocacy & Corporate Social Responsibility, ASA (moderator)
- Andy Hepburn, Chief Innovation Officer, GPSEd
- Kelli Kwiatkowski, Director of Secondary Teaching & Learning, School District of New Berlin, WI (invited)
- Sara Baird, Assistant Director, CTE, Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (invited)
