Partners

To drive system-level change, four leading national organizations in the pathways movement have joined forces with philanthropic organizations to simultaneously strengthen existing efforts to provide high-quality college and career pathways at scale and push the field toward innovative strategies and solutions.

Click on each organization’s logo to learn more about their role in this work.

Or click here to view the Founding Funders

Advance CTE

careertech.org

Advance CTE is the longest-standing national nonprofit that represents State Directors and state leaders responsible for secondary, postsecondary, and adult Career Technical Education (CTE) across all 50 states and U.S. territories. Established in 1920, Advance CTE offers a wide range of professional learning, technical assistance, and support for state leadership to advance high-quality CTE policies, programs, and pathways that ensure career and college success for each learner.

National Career Clusters Framework®

Improving the quality, connectivity, and awareness of career pathways, including Career Technical Education (CTE) programs, is a key pillar of Advance CTE’s national research and policy work.

Advance CTE serves as the steward of the National Career Clusters® Framework, the central building block to achieve consistently designed and high-quality career education programs. First introduced in 2002, a version of the Framework is used by the majority of states to organize their CTE programs. A modernized Framework was unveiled in October 2024 after a 2-year development and validation process led by Advance CTE.

Advance CTE provides professional learning, technical assistance, and resources to support the implementation of the Framework, including a new approach for developing flexible programs of study and educator credentialing (LINK TO BRIEFS)

Education Strategy Group

edstrategy.org

Education Strategy Group (ESG) works with America’s education, business, and civic leaders to expand economic opportunity and mobility by increasing educational attainment. We are driven by the conviction that a robust education system aligned with workforce demands leads to a stronger, more equitable society. ESG specializes in strengthening the transition points that have the highest stakes for youth and adults and the highest benefit for states, communities, and economies. We work across sectors to move the needle on issues that are critical to improving student success and advancing equity.

Accelerate ED

Since 2022, ESG has led the work of Accelerate ED, a national initiative funded by the Gates Foundation supporting over two dozen communities nationwide to design and scale accelerated pathways for high school students to get on a fast track to a career-relevant degree. By partnering with intermediary organizations, school districts, colleges, and employers, Accelerate ED aims to integrate dual enrollment, work-based learning, and comprehensive advising into the student experience. As the community has grown to include a range of diverse approaches to accelerated pathways, ESG has also led the development of a robust resource library to capture learnings and spread strategies to the broader field.

Jobs for the Future

jff.org

Jobs for the Future (JFF) transforms U.S. education and workforce systems to drive economic success for people, businesses, and communities. We do this by designing solutions, scaling best practices, influencing policy and action, and investing in innovation. We forge deep partnerships with employers, investors, entrepreneurs, policymakers, and education and workforce development providers to break down barriers and reimagine what’s possible.

Pathways to Prosperity

Through Pathways to Prosperity (PtoP), Jobs for the Future is leading a national movement to reimagine how we prepare youth for the future of work. Launched in 2012 in collaboration with the Harvard Graduate School of Education, PtoP works with innovative organizations and leaders, practitioners, and policymakers advancing pathways strategies and systems in their states and regions.

Together with our Network members and Coalition partners, we develop, implement, and scale pathways to expand economic opportunity for all young people and meet regional talent needs.

Our forward-looking approach depends on strong cross-sector partnerships. PtoP mobilizes K-12 and postsecondary education leaders, policymakers, and employers, bringing together a diverse group of stakeholders to build a future that works—for everyone.

New America

newamerica.org/education-policy

New America is dedicated to renewing the promise of America, bringing us closer to our nation’s highest ideals. We’re a different kind of think tank: one dedicated to public problem solving. Our team of visionary researchers, changemakers, technologists, and storytellers study and seize the opportunities presented by dramatic social and technological change. We search for powerful ideas, wherever they are, and collaborate with civic innovators around the country to develop evidence-based solutions.

Partnership to Advance Youth Apprenticeship

As part of New America’s education “cluster”, we are leading broader research and advocacy efforts around postsecondary pathways for youth, which includes both Launch and the Partnership to Advance Youth Apprenticeship (PAYA). The PAYA initiative is a multi-partner collaborative that supports states and cities in their efforts to expand access to high-quality apprenticeship opportunities for high school-age youth.

The Partnership convenes and mobilizes the expertise, experience, and collective networks of national, state, and regional partners to:

Support place-based partnerships to increase the number of youth apprenticeship programs aligned to PAYA’s Definition & Principles for High Quality Youth Apprenticeship
Facilitate learning and innovation to support the wide-scale adoption of best practices and enabling policies across a growing field
Strengthen the case and evidence base for youth apprenticeship to raise awareness and to mobilize policy, action and investment.

Founding Funders

The founding funders of the Launch Initiative are dedicated to advancing economic and social mobility for all learners. Throughout their expansive philanthropic efforts, they are champions for improving access in education and enhancing the quality of life for all people.