Pathways Director
Innovation & Implementation Director
Executive Director
Illinois’ College and Career Pathway Endorsements (CCPE) system is a cornerstone strategy of the Postsecondary & Workforce Readiness (PWR) Act to increase the number of Illinois high school graduates prepared for postsecondary education and future careers. To earn an Endorsement on a high school transcript, a student must complete an individualized learning plan, engage in a career-focused instructional sequence (including early college credit), participate in work-based learning, and demonstrate readiness for college-level reading and math. Students earning the Endorsement will develop technical and essential employability competencies, earn in-demand credentials, and be prepared to launch rewarding careers.
Over the past several years, EdSystems and a national nonprofit, JFF, have worked with State agencies, employers, and other public and private stakeholders to identify essential employability and technical competencies for College and Career Pathway Endorsement areas.
In the spring of 2020, EdSystems sought out districts willing to commence implementation of the State’s College and Career Pathway Endorsement (CCPE) and continue over the next three years. Currently, EdSystems is steering a network of more than 73 school districts representing 107 high schools statewide (16% of Illinois high schools) that are implementing endorsement systems aligned to the PWR Act. This network provides a foundation for future scaling through continued alignment of funding, policy, and support at the State level.
Finally, EdSystems partnered with Southern Illinois University’s Center for Workforce Development to develop a web-based tool that communities are using to submit information on their local systems to ISBE per the PWR Act’s requirements. This tool requires communities to consider and document each aspect of their Endorsement system, and also provides an important inventory of pathways implementation across the State.
For more detail on the College and Career Pathway Endorsements, go to the PWR Act website or ISBE’s webpage.
A growing number of institutions are offering incentives to students who have earned a CCPE, to help attract high school students into the secondary to postsecondary pathways and increase college completion rates for these students.
Education leaders from Fayette and Marion Counties share how they’ve expanded education pathways in the region in the last three years, and call for statewide transferability of core education courses through the Illinois Articulation Initiative. Learn more about how you can support this effort.
Please join our next community of practice on Monday, July 18 from 10:30–11:30 a.m. We will focus on experiences along the work-based learning continuum in the business sector. Learn how District 214, along with their industry and school partners, support and design opportunities in their business pathway.
At the I-WIN convening on June 27, 2022, leaders from California-based Climate Action Pathways for Schools shared their model for inspiring and implementing climate education programs to reduce greenhouse gas emissions while saving money for school districts.
To support the development of high-quality Career Exploration and Career Development Experiences in middle and high schools, ISBE tapped EdSystems to help support of a one-year pilot program. Check out the pilot’s models, resources, best practices, lessons learned, and recommendations for policy and supports to help better inform the field.
The redesigned site features key resources, guidance and implementation supports, and exemplars for the PWR Act’s four aligned strategies: the Postsecondary and Career Expectations (PaCE) Framework, College and Career Pathway Endorsements, Transitional Instruction, and Competency-Based Education Pilot.
An brief on HB3296/Public Act 102-0917, signed into law on May 27, 2022, that advances the Postsecondary and Career Expectations (PaCE) Framework and the College and Career Pathway Endorsements.
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