The Illinois Education and Career Success Network was established in 2013 by EdSystems, Advance Illinois, and the Illinois Student Assistance Commission in response to the P-20 Council’s goal for Illinois to increase the number of adults with high-quality college degrees and postsecondary credentials to 60% by the year 2025. Originally named the Illinois 60 by 25 Network, the Success Network supports communities to increase meaningful and equitable postsecondary attainment and civic engagement. In 2015, we established the Leadership Community designation, which recognizes communities with systems in place to make progress toward postsecondary attainment goals. The name was changed in 2022 to reflect the Success Network’s purpose and vision beyond 2025.
Our Role
EdSystems supports Leadership Communities by managing a peer-to-peer learning and action network, which includes offering an annual conference and regional meetings. Additionally, we provide the Success Network Dashboard, a mechanism to gather and curate critical data, as well as technical assistance on collective impact and other strategies. Finally, we serve as a conduit for financial support to communities for strategies to increase meaningful and equitable postsecondary attainment.
The Success Network’s Leadership Communities are proof points for the state policies we develop. We use lessons learned from the communities to inform state policymakers on what’s working well and where more support is needed. EdSystems supports Leadership Communities in implementing strategies outlined in the Postsecondary and Workforce Readiness (PWR) Act, including College and Career Pathway Endorsements and transitional instruction.
In 2020, the Network Organizers created the Student Advisory Council (SAC) to collect student feedback on initiatives and identify areas where students need support navigating the education system. The SAC meets regularly to share perspectives, inform the Success Network’s efforts and statewide policy, deepen knowledge on educational equity issues, and enhance understanding of Illinois’ education policy and practice landscape.
