Portfolio

College & Career Pathways

Through the College & Career Pathways portfolio, EdSystems:

  • Defines and implements high-quality pathway models and competencies that prepare students for promising credentials and careers.
  • Scales and strengthens Illinois’ College and Career Pathway Endorsements system, aligned programs of study, and work-based learning continuum.
Current Projects
College & Career Pathways, Data Impact & Leadership

Accelerated Model Pathways for Information Technology (AMP-IT)

The AMP-IT initiative is engaging school districts and their community college and employer partners to design and launch an accelerated IT pathway.
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College & Career Pathways

Career Pathways Dictionary

To help transform outcomes for youth and adults across Illinois, the Illinois Career Pathways Dictionary defines key terms for career pathway programs and system elements, while also offering resources and implementation guidance to support statewide alignment.
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College & Career Pathways, Bridges to Postsecondary

Chicago Public Schools: Preparing Students for College and Career Success

With the support of Crown Family Philanthropies, CPS brought in EdSystems to provide strategic counsel and support of the OCCS pathways vision framework and Student Success Roadmap.
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College & Career Pathways, Bridges to Postsecondary

Community College Competency-Based Education Pilot Project

Together with the Illinois Community College Board, we are supporting a cohort of community colleges to develop competency-based education programs in both welding and industrial maintenance.
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College & Career Pathways

Community College Pathway Equity and Currency

To help encourage learners to complete the rigorous requirements and earn a College and Career Pathways Endorsement and matriculate into postsecondary, EdSystems is supporting the development of equity-centered strategies and incentives for students.
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College & Career Pathways, Bridges to Postsecondary, Data Impact & Leadership

Great Lakes College and Career Readiness State Advocacy Network

To support actionable policy development for high-impact college and career readiness strategies, EdSystems is participating in a cross-state community of practice.
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College & Career Pathways, Bridges to Postsecondary

Greater Peoria Essential Abilities and Knowledge (GPEAK)

To help stabilize and grow the local economy, community partners in Peoria are working with EdSystems to design and implement GPEAK, which translates the state’s ten competencies into a practical system to prepare individuals for meaningful and fulfilling careers.
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College & Career Pathways, Bridges to Postsecondary

Illinois Education and Career Success Network

Illinois Education and Career Success Network supports communities to increase meaningful and equitable postsecondary attainment and civic engagement.
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College & Career Pathways, Bridges to Postsecondary, Data Impact & Leadership

Illinois Education and Career Success Network: Policy Committee

EdSystems staffs the Success Network’s Policy Committee to foster collaboration and peer learning, elevate local practice to inform state policy, and support local practitioners.
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College & Career Pathways

Illinois Model Programs of Study Guides

Sponsored by the Illinois Community College Board, EdSystems leads the development of the State of Illinois Model Programs of Study Guides. Organized by industry sector, the guides provide secondary and postsecondary partners a framework to develop high-quality pathways that incorporate meaningful dual credit, CTE, and general education coursework as well as work-based learning opportunities in alignment with Illinois’ College and Career Pathway Endorsement.
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College & Career Pathways

Illinois Work-Based Learning Innovation Network (I-WIN)

I-WIN helps educators, work-based learning coordinators, and employers leverage innovative models for scaling high-quality work-based learning opportunities in school districts and community colleges across the state.
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College & Career Pathways, Bridges to Postsecondary

Increasing Dual Enrollment Access and Success (IDEAS)

In partnership with JFF and College of Lake County, EdSystems is supporting the design and implementation of a new dual enrollment hub to help improve educational outcomes for high-need high school students.
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College & Career Pathways

Lake County: Support for Career Pathways

In 2023, EdSystems began supporting Waukegan CUSD 60 and its regional partners with targeted support for alignment to the Illinois College and Career Pathway Endorsement and systems for career exploration.
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College & Career Pathways

Northern Illinois: Support for Career Pathways

Since 2015, EdSystems has provided strategic counsel and technical assistance to Rockford Public Schools, Belvidere District 100, and Rock Valley College as they build and expand their college and career pathway systems.
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College & Career Pathways, Data Impact & Leadership

Scaling Transformative Advanced Manufacturing Pathways (STAMP)

STAMP serves secondary districts in implementing manufacturing pathways that align to the College and Career Pathway Endorsement, with a particular focus on historically marginalized students.
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College & Career Pathways

Southwestern Illinois College Regional Pathways Initiative

EdSystems is supporting SWIC and its school district and employer partners in developing high-quality, comprehensive college and career pathways leading to regionally in-demand occupations.
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Strengthening the Talent Pipeline through STAMP: Regional Trends in Manufacturing Pathway Participation

The Scaling Transformative Advanced Manufacturing Pathways (STAMP) initiative represents a critical workforce development strategy addressing Illinois’ manufacturing talent shortage while promoting educational equity. This data brief analyzes participation trends from the program’s inception in August 2022 through December 2024, examining enrollment patterns, demographic representation, and geographic alignment with labor market demand across 19 participating Illinois school districts.

2025 Policy Agenda

EdSystem’s policy agenda outlines the core challenges we seek to address across four pillars: leadership, governance, and vision; student experiences and conditions; policy evaluation and continuous improvement; and future readiness. For each challenge, we identify policy aims that describe the conditions we aspire to and practices to drive college and career success for students, particularly those from historically marginalized communities. Through these levers, we seek to support college and career readiness efforts at the state, regional, and local levels.

State of Illinois Model Programs of Study Guides: 2024 Utilization Report

With the support of ICCB, EdSystems researched the utilization of the State of Illinois Model Programs of Study Guides in Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources; Architecture, Construction and Energy; Arts and Communications and Finance and Business Services. The report includes the findings and recommendations to improve alignment.

Illinois Model Programs of Study Guide: Agriculture, Food, and Natural Resources

This Illinois Model Programs of Study Guide uses a backward-mapping approach to outline robust agriculture, food, and natural resources pathways aligned to Illinois’ innovative College and Career Pathway Endorsement system. The guide, sponsored by the Illinois Community College Board as part of the Perkins V Plan and developed in collaboration with the Illinois State Board of Education, was first released in August 2021 and revised in September 2024.

Illinois Model Programs of Study Guide: Arts and Communications

This Illinois Model Programs of Study Guide uses a backward-mapping approach to outline robust arts and communications pathways aligned to Illinois’ innovative College and Career Pathway Endorsement system. The guide, sponsored by the Illinois Community College Board as part of the Perkins V Plan and developed in collaboration with the Illinois State Board of Education, was first released in August 2021 and revised in September 2024.

Illinois Model Programs of Study Guide: Education

This Illinois Model Programs of Study Guide uses a backward-mapping approach to outline robust education pathways aligned to Illinois’ innovative College and Career Pathway Endorsement system. The guide, sponsored by the Illinois Community College Board as part of the Perkins V Plan and developed in collaboration with the Illinois State Board of Education, was first released in October 2020 and revised in October 2022 and September 2024.

Illinois Model Programs of Study Guide: Finance and Business Services

This Illinois Model Programs of Study Guide uses a backward-mapping approach to outline robust finance and business services pathways aligned to Illinois’ innovative College and Career Pathway Endorsement system. The guide, sponsored by the Illinois Community College Board as part of the Perkins V Plan and developed in collaboration with the Illinois State Board of Education, was first released in August 2021 and revised in September 2024.

Illinois Model Programs of Study Guide: Health Sciences

This Illinois Model Programs of Study Guide uses a backward-mapping approach to outline robust health sciences and technology pathways aligned to Illinois’ innovative College and Career Pathway Endorsement system. The guide, sponsored by the Illinois Community College Board as part of the Perkins V Plan and developed in collaboration with the Illinois State Board of Education, was first released in October 2020 and revised in September 2024.

Illinois Model Programs of Study Guide: Information Technology

This Illinois Model Programs of Study Guide uses a backward-mapping approach to outline robust IT pathways aligned to Illinois’ innovative College and Career Pathway Endorsement system. The guide, sponsored by the Illinois Community College Board as part of the Perkins V Plan and developed in collaboration with the Illinois State Board of Education, was first released in October 2020 and revised in September 2024.

Illinois Model Programs of Study Guide: Manufacturing and Engineering

This Illinois Model Programs of Study Guide uses a backward-mapping approach to outline robust manufacturing and engineering pathways aligned to Illinois’ innovative College and Career Pathway Endorsement system. The guide, sponsored by the Illinois Community College Board as part of the Perkins V Plan and developed in collaboration with the Illinois State Board of Education, was first released in October 2020 and revised in September 2024.

Illinois Model Programs of Study Guide: Architecture, Construction, and Energy

This Illinois Model Programs of Study Guide uses a backward-mapping approach to outline robust architecture, construction, and energy pathways aligned to Illinois’ innovative College and Career Pathway Endorsement system. The guide, sponsored by the Illinois Community College Board as part of the Perkins V Plan and developed in collaboration with the Illinois State Board of Education, was first released in August 2021 and revised in September 2024.

Students With High Needs Show Resilience Through Scaling Transformative Advanced Manufacturing Pathways

The Scaling Transformative Advanced Manufacturing Pathways (STAMP) initiative, launched by EdSystems and the Illinois Manufacturers’ Association, creates opportunities for students in 29 Illinois school districts to explore in-demand manufacturing careers and earn valuable industry credentials. In this brief, our first analysis of student participation data, we explore if historically underrepresented youth are obtaining manufacturing and employment skills that can positively shape their economic trajectories.

Career Development Experience Toolkit

The Career Development Experience Toolkit, initially released in 2019 and updated in August 2024, adheres to the framework of the Postsecondary and Workforce Readiness (PWR) Act for College and Career Pathway Endorsements. The guide and online resources are designed to serve any organization seeking to provide youth with rigorous work-based learning opportunities. Career development experiences are part of Illinois’ broader work-based learning continuum and refer to a broad array of experiential learning that addresses the components included in the statutory definition.

Quality Criteria for College and Career Pathways Implementation

This resource empowers college and career pathway practitioners at all implementation stages to center equity and continuous improvement in their work. The six framework components cover the breadth of pathways development and implementation: development and engagement, recruitment and access, instructional sequence, academic instruction and supports, instructors, and employer-informed competencies and skills. The quality criteria are organized along an implementation continuum and include equitable practices and continuous improvement strategies.

Scaling Work-Based Learning: Quality Criteria for Continuous Improvement and Equity

This resource is designed to help communities enhance their work-based learning programs and ensure equitable access for schools with varying capacities. It includes quality criteria, resources, and equity considerations for career awareness, career exploration, team-based challenges, career development experiences, and work-based learning systems and processes. Equity insights and student “I can” statements are also incorporated. 

Success Network 10-Year Impact Report

Assessing the collective impact of the Illinois Education and Career Success Network’s first decade: 2013–2023.

State of Illinois Model Programs of Study Guides: 2023 Utilization Report

With the support of ICCB, EdSystems researched the utilization of the State of Illinois Model Programs of Study Guides in Education, Health Sciences and Technology, Information Technology, and Manufacturing and Engineering. The report includes the findings and recommendations to improve alignment.

Early Pathways into the Education Profession: A Comprehensive Evaluation Framework

The framework includes (1) an evaluation framework for early pathways, (2) an investigation into the feasibility of using the Illinois Longitudinal Data System (ILDS) to analyze early pathways outcomes, and (3) an early pathways pilot study using 2022 Illinois Report Card data and interviews with high school and university administrators.

Early Pathways into the Education Profession: Quick Takes

A summary of Early Pathways into the Education Profession: A Comprehensive Evaluation Framework, a three-pronged inquiry into evaluating early pathways into the education profession.

Resources and Guidance for Supporting Young Women in Manufacturing

In partnership with the IMA Education Foundation, this resource specifies how to best support students at every stage on their journey from elementary to and through postsecondary, with a focus on shifting how we speak about and engage women in manufacturing experiences.

PaCE, CCPE, and CCRI Crosswalk

Examining the key areas of alignment between the Postsecondary and Career Expectations (PaCE), College and Career Pathway Endorsement (CCPE), and College and Career Readiness Indicator (CCRI) frameworks.

Career Pathways Dictionary

The first-of-its-kind Illinois Career Pathways Dictionary now includes expanded and updated definitions as well as resources and implementation guidance on a new website, pathwaysdictionary.org.

Career Development Experience Toolkit – Resources Bundle

A collection of resources and templates as part of the larger Career Development Experience Toolkit. These resources are meant to serve multiple audiences – from communities just beginning to develop a career development experience to those looking to enhance their offerings and ensure they are tied to real-world skills and opportunities for participants.

SEPI Student Voices Evaluation: Quick Takes

This Quick Takes is based on results from the Student Voices Evaluation of Scaling Education Pathways in Illinois (SEPI), released in October 2022, which focuses on the perspective of students participating in education pathways.

Scaling Education Pathways in Illinois: Student Voices Evaluation

This study, conducted by the P-20 Research and Data Collaborative at Northern Illinois University for Education Systems Center, focuses on understanding the perspectives of high school students who were currently enrolled in education pathways as part of the Scaling Education Pathways in Illinois initiative.

Illinois Model Programs of Study Guide: Human and Public Services

This Illinois Model Programs of Study Guide uses a backward-mapping approach to outline robust human and public services pathways aligned to Illinois’ innovative College and Career Pathway Endorsement system. The guide is sponsored by the Illinois Community College Board as part of the Perkins V Plan and developed in consultation and collaboration with the Illinois State Board of Education.

Illinois Model Programs of Study Guide: Culinary and Hospitality

This Illinois Model Programs of Study Guide uses a backward-mapping approach to outline robust culinary and hospitality pathways aligned to Illinois’ innovative College and Career Pathway Endorsement system. The guide is sponsored by the Illinois Community College Board as part of the Perkins V Plan and developed in consultation and collaboration with the Illinois State Board of Education.

Career Development Experience Toolkit – Facilitation Guide

The Facilitation Guide provides a guided checklist for communities to design and implement a career development experience as a part of Illinois’ broader work-based learning continuum. This document is meant to be used in conjunction with the Career Development Experience Toolkit and Companion Guide, which outlines community models, best practices, and resources.

Postsecondary & Workforce Readiness (PWR) Act Website

Learn about the PWR Act’s components and the latest updates on implementation, including resources from the Illinois Student Assistance Commission and EdSystems, at pwract.org (relaunched in 2022).

HB3296 Overview

A 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.

College and Career Readiness Metrics and Evaluation Framework

This master metrics list includes data metrics recommended or employed by members of the Northern Illinois University P-20 Research & Data Collaborative (RDC) across their portfolio of collaborative, college and career readiness-related projects. EdSystems is a member of the RDC.

Scaling Education Pathways Initiative (SEPI) Analysis

EdSystems developed this analysis of the initial implementation of SEPI with input from the first cohort of collaboratives. It was undertaken to understand how the components of the education pathway were being executed in practice and to collect promising practices and lessons learned.

Illinois College and Career Pathways: School Readiness Framework Tracker

The tracker, formatted as an Excel file, is designed for district, intermediary, and school teams to identify the status, responsibility parties, and timelines for various aspects of pathway implementation.

Illinois College and Career Pathways: School Readiness Framework

A school readiness framework to support district, intermediary organizations (such as an Education for Employment district, regional superintendent, joint district and community college collaboration, or economic development or collective impact organization), and school leaders to develop action plans for implementing college and career pathways. The indicators outlined in this framework are based on best practice, research, and implementation in the field.

Middle-Skills Pathways in Chicago – Transportation, Distribution, & Logistics Analysis

Part of the Middle-Skills Pathways in Chicago project funded by Bridges to Brighter Futures, this analysis seeks to define how education and workforce partners can advance regional, middle-skills pathways for the transportation, distribution, and logistics sector that lead to quality industry credentials and degrees.

Middle-Skills Pathways in Chicago – Manufacturing Analysis

Part of the Middle-Skills Pathways in Chicago project funded by Bridges to Brighter Futures, this analysis seeks to define how education and workforce partners can advance regional, middle-skills pathways for the manufacturing sector that lead to quality industry credentials and degrees.

Middle-Skills Pathways in Chicago – Health Sciences Analysis

Part of the Middle-Skills Pathways in Chicago project funded by Bridges to Brighter Futures, this analysis seeks to define how education and workforce partners can advance regional, middle-skills pathways for the health sciences sector that lead to quality industry credentials and degrees.

Middle-Skills Pathways in Chicago – Education and Childcare Analysis

Part of the Middle-Skills Pathways in Chicago project funded by Bridges to Brighter Futures, this analysis seeks to define how education and workforce partners can advance regional, middle-skills pathways for the education and childcare sector that lead to quality industry credentials and degrees.

Middle-Skills Pathways in Chicago – Information Technology Analysis

Part of the Middle-Skills Pathways in Chicago project funded by Bridges to Brighter Futures, this analysis seeks to define how education and workforce partners can advance regional, middle-skills pathways for the information technology sector that lead to quality industry credentials and degrees.

Middle-Skills Pathways in Chicago – Overall System Improvements

A detailed list of five recommendations for improving education- and workforce-systems improvements to better support middle-skills pathways in the Chicago region.

Middle-Skills Pathways in Chicago – Outcomes Framework

This outcomes framework identifies descriptive quantitative metrics that can be used across Chicago’s middle-skills pathways system as a whole, for groupings of programs, or for specific programs. The descriptive information and metrics in this framework can help funders, policymakers, and system administrators to better understand the context for middle-skills pathway program delivery in Chicago and the outcomes associated with those programs.

Middle-Skills Pathways in Chicago – Glossary

A glossary of terms for use by education and workforce leaders in support of advancing middle-skills pathways in Chicago.

Career Development Experience Toolkit – Companion Piece

An extension of the Career Development Experience Toolkit, the Companion Piece aims to explore career development experiences and provide resources to address the needs of stakeholders outside of a traditional high school setting, including workforce development organizations, community-based organizations, and alternative high schools in order to serve youth more inclusively.

Great Lakes College & Career Pathways Partnership: By the Numbers Report, presented by Education Systems Center at Northern Illinois University.
2020 Great Lakes College & Career Pathways Partnership: By the Numbers

The 2020 Great Lakes College & Career Pathways Partnership By the Numbers report examines community capacity as well as student experiences and outcomes. This report also reflects on process learnings as we concluded the work of the partnership.

60 by 25 Network Impact Report Cover
Illinois 60 by 25 Network Impact Report

This report captures the impact of the Illinois 60 by 25 Network from 2013–2020. The Network’s Leadership Communities are driving state policy implementation, deepening and validating collaboration by using the organizing principles of collective impact, increasing cross-sector collaboration, and enhancing leadership and governance structures within their communities. (The Illinois 60 by 25 Network is now known as the Illinois Education and Career Success Network.)

Report cover for the "Recommended Technical and Essential Employability Competencies for College and Career Pathway Endorsements," released in April 2020. Cover includes the PWR Act logo and the Seal of the State of Illinois.
Recommended Technical and Essential Employability Competencies for College and Career Pathway Endorsements

The essential employability competencies, entrepreneurial mindsets, and technical skills, set forth in this document were developed through an iterative process involving public-private steering committees established pursuant to the Postsecondary and Workforce Readiness (PWR) Act in order to implement College and Career Pathway Endorsements.

College and Career Pathway Endorsements Framework

The framework for the College and Career Pathway Endorsements system was established by the Postsecondary and Workforce Readiness (PWR) Act. School districts award the endorsement on high school diplomas/transcripts to those demonstrating readiness for college and careers.

Health Science Pathways Pipeline Analysis Project

This analysis describes the population of Illinois students participating in the health sciences pathway pipeline from high school into community college, using state-level technical infrastructure to link individual-level data from the Illinois State Board of Education and the Illinois Community College Board. This integrated dataset establishes unduplicated counts of students enrolling in Illinois high school health science career and technical education courses and Illinois community college degree programs in health science. This brief provides selected project findings for a cohort of health science pathway students transitioning from high school to community college and a second cohort of students enrolling in a community college health science program.

College & Career Pathways

Analysis of College and Career Pathways

To understand the potential impact of the College and Career Pathway Endorsement, EdSystems developed both a pathways evaluation framework and a ROI analysis framework.
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College & Career Pathways

Career Development Experience Toolkit

The Career Development Experience Toolkit, aligned to the PWR Act, supports scaling high-quality career pathways and work-based learning.
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College & Career Pathways

Career Pathways in Tanzania

Since 2017, EdSystems has partnered with Tanzania Development Support and 4-H Tanzania to implement a career awareness and exploration program designed to help students deepen their awareness of and build competencies and skills in fields that are in high demand in Tanzania.
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College & Career Pathways

Developing Quality Criteria for College and Career Pathways and Work-Based Learning

EdSystems developed quality criteria to inform the implementation and evaluation of Illinois’ College and Career Pathway Endorsement and work-based learning.
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College & Career Pathways

East St. Louis: Support for Career Pathways

EdSystems is working with the East St. Louis community to engage community, school district, and higher education stakeholders in deep racial equity work in the context of college and career pathways
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College & Career Pathways

Elgin: Expanding College and Career Pathways

Elgin’s Alliance for College Readiness engaged EdSystems to support alignment to the new College and Career Pathway Endorsement system and the State’s new Perkins V plan.
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College & Career Pathways

Extended Model Pathways in Chicago

EdSystems supported City Colleges of Chicago in designing extended model pathways from high school through college degree completion and developed student-facing resources to support recruitment.
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College & Career Pathways, Bridges to Postsecondary, Data Impact & Leadership

Great Lakes College and Career Pathways Partnership

EdSystems provided the Great Lakes College and Career Pathways Partnership with strategic expertise and technical assistance.
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College & Career Pathways

Health Sciences Career Exploration and Career Development Experience Pilot

EdSystems led a pilot project to support healthcare workforce development through intergenerational work-based learning.
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College & Career Pathways

Illinois Advanced Apprenticeship Consortium

EdSystems’ supported the Illinois Advanced Apprenticeship Consortium in implementing a high-quality manufacturing pathway program.
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College & Career Pathways

Joliet Junior College: Support for Work-Based Learning

In their ongoing commitment to enhance college and career pathway development, EdSystems is supporting Joliet Junior College in designing and implementing equitable work-based learning opportunities for high school students throughout the region.
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College & Career Pathways

Liberia Career Pathways

EdSystems worked with Liberian partners to launch the Liberian nongovernmental organization and the U.S. based nonprofit organization.
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College & Career Pathways

Middle-Skills Pathways in Chicago

EdSystems conducted a deep landscape analysis of middle-skills pathways in Chicago that lead to priority occupations.
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College & Career Pathways

Plainfield: Support for Career Pathways

EdSystems supported the Plainfield community to engage community, school district, and higher education stakeholders in college and career pathways design.
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College & Career Pathways, Bridges to Postsecondary

Postsecondary Leadership Series

In support of the OneGoal team and their Postsecondary Leadership Series, EdSystems supported capacity-building for OneGoal staff and advising for partner-facing content relating to college and career pathways, early college credit, transitional instruction, work-based learning, and data.
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College & Career Pathways

Scaling Education Pathways in Illinois (SEPI)

Scaling Education Pathways in Illinois (SEPI) guided communities in creating streamlined teacher career pathways.
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Creating clear, unambiguous paths to college and career opportunities

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