Indiana Launch Goals:

• Identify barriers to career pathways for Black, Latino and economically disadvantaged students who historically have not experienced a high rate of post-secondary success
• Define quality pathways to include definitions of high-quality work-based learning experiences
• Define Credentials of Value in the Region
• Implement and learn from a regional pathway approach to include the above and to scale supporting policies and processes to include
  • Career Coaching (Exploration, Engagement and Experience)
  • Standardize Access to Career Coaching Opportunities
• Fall 23: Focus on state definitions and goal setting work, using LAUNCH districts as a sounding board and working to raise awareness and familiarity of the work.
• Spring 24: Create the tools that will allow districts to align toward the definitions and goals, esp. around WBL and credentials: operationalize pathways
• Big picture sequencing: State Definitions > Goal setting > Tools that create regional alignment & operationalize pathways

Through the Indiana Graduates Prepared to Succeed initiative, IDOE and stakeholders across the state have worked to define a set of five characteristics that indicate a student’s preparation for success after high school. These characteristics include: academic mastery, career and postsecondary readiness (credentials and experience), communication and collaboration, work ethic, and civic, financial, and digital literacy.

In support of this effort, Indiana is focused on defining quality pathways that lead to credentials of currency and high-quality work-based learning experiences. In order to achieve our goals, Indiana must learn how to scale systems that provide access to all communities. East Central Indiana has both the challenges and the assets.

The two school districts serve a majority economically disadvantaged student population: 73% (Richmond) and 62.7% (Randolph Eastern). The region covers 14 counties with over 65,000 students. By 2050, the area’s population is projected to decline by 15%. Due to these challenges, the region is focused on activating partnerships between K-12, higher education, and the workforce to find solutions to develop and retain talent.

Through this initiative, the partnership hopes to identify pathways of interest that are inclusive of opportunities for the identified students to earn post-secondary credentials and to provide greater access to high-quality work-based learning opportunities that lead to credentials of currency that will support the postsecondary high-wage, high-demand job attainment.

Through the Forge Your Path coalition work, part of the Indiana Economic Development Corporation (IEDC) READI grant and the East Central Talent Region work with Ball State University, the following pathways have been identified: healthcare, manufacturing, food process and agribusiness, IT, financial and customer service, logistics, and education.

In service of building out these pathways, the partnership aspires to develop standard approaches to providing access to all students and providing standard practice around the career advising continuum.