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I-WIN Events

Addressing Scheduling Needs in WBL

On Wednesday, November 8, 11 a.m.: Hear from communities working with their school’s master scheduling team on flexible options to incorporate professional learning experiences.

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Resource

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.

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Project

Analysis of College and Career Pathways

To understand the potential impact of the College and Career Pathway Endorsement, EdSystems is engaging in two pathways-related data and evaluation activities: a pathways evaluation framework and an ROI analysis framework.

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Project

Elgin Community College Second Chance

EdSystems is applying its experience and knowledge of long-term system building efforts to support Elgin Community College as it seeks to better serve its students with experiences in the carceral justice system.

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News

Scaling Accelerated IT Pathways: Lessons Learned in Year One

To support the scaling of high-quality IT pathways in response to employer demand, collaborators in our Accelerated Model Pathways for Information Technology initiative designed a three-tier model giving students the potential to earn 30+ early college credits. Check out our blueprint, what we’ve learned, and how we are engaging student voices in the process.

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News

Kyle Westbrook Named Executive Director of EdSystems

Education Systems Center at NIU is pleased to announce the appointment of Kyle Westbrook as its new executive director. Kyle brings a wealth of experience and a strong commitment to educational equity, making him an excellent fit for the organization’s mission.

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Events

Performance-Based Assessment Showcase

Teachers in the performance-based assessment pilot shared their projects and the process of creating them, highlighting how performance-based assessments can be used across disciplines and with students from a range of backgrounds with a variety of characteristics.

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Project

Community College Pathway Equity and Currency

To help encourage learners to complete the rigorous requirements and earn the College and Career Pathway Endorsement (CCPE) opportunity, as well as matriculate into postsecondary pathways, EdSystems is supporting the development of equity-centered strategies alongside incentives or currency that will help students and their families.

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I-WIN Events

Supporting Young Women in Manufacturing

We shared best practices, community models, and resources for supporting young women to pursue experiences in manufacturing. This session also shared insights and feedback gathered from female high school and college students on what they want to see in these efforts.

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I-WIN Events

Regional Team-Based Challenges

Leaders from Ridgewood High School, Triton College, Waubonsee Community College, and Elgin Community College shared how they are hosting regional team-based challenges in education, manufacturing, and health sciences.

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I-WIN Events

CDE Model: School-Based Enterprises

Collinsville Area Vocational Center shared how it facilitates Career Development Experiences through school-based enterprise models in building trades, auto mechanics, food service, education, and health sciences.

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Resource

Student Insights into Postsecondary CBE

Students in the CBE Welding Technology Program at Lewis and Clark Community College, a frontrunner in competency-based education, provided valuable insights into the value of a CBE framework and how to help students be successful.

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News

Executive Director Transition Announcement

Education Systems Center at NIU (EdSystems) today announces that Founder and Executive Director Jonathan Furr will be transitioning from his role as of June 2023 after nearly eleven years of building and leading the organization. Jon will be pursuing new professional opportunities, which he will share in the coming weeks.

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Advancing Racial Equity

Placing Our Big Bets Through 2025 and Beyond

EdSystems is coalescing around five new goals, which we call our Big Bets, to ensure that our state’s education and workforce systems truly lessen racial inequities and lead to tangible progress for our Black and Latinx students that have for far too long been underserved by these systems.

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Thought Leadership

What Do the New Policies around Dual Credit Mean?

Over the past few months, the Illinois Community College Board and Higher Learning Commission each published sets of rules for public feedback that will shape dual credit implementation in Illinois. How? Read our thoughts and public comment to ICCB:

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News

Introducing Launch: Equitable and Accelerated Pathways for All

EdSystems is excited to announce our selection as one of 11 states participating in Launch: Equitable & Accelerated Pathways for All. Launch is a national college and career pathways initiative that strives for every learner to have access to and succeed in high-quality and equitable pathways.

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Project

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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News

2022 In Review

2022 marked the tenth anniversary of Education Systems Center at NIU. Our portfolio–and the team supporting the work–has expanded significantly in the past decade, and more growth is on the horizon.

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Project

Illinois Education and Career Success Network: Policy Committee

Launched in December 2022, EdSystems staffs the Success Network’s Policy Committee to provide space for local practitioners and policy leaders to collaborate and learn from one another, elevate local practice to inform State policy, and support local practitioners to take advantage of policy windows.

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Project

Future of Learning Coalition

The Future of Learning Coalition is an alliance working to advance an innovation ecosystem for equitable, student-centered education in Illinois to better prepare future-ready young people and empower them to realize their greatest potential.

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I-WIN Events

Onboarding and Supporting Employer Partners

Learn how the Valley Education for Employment System (VALEES) is engaging employers in their region to be prepared to host and support young people in work-based learning opportunities, including internships.

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I-WIN Events

Health Sciences Career Exploration Event Showcase

Learn from three Illinois communities that piloted a multigenerational Health Sciences Career Exploration event this past year. These events were designed to provide information on education and career opportunities for both students and families.

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Resource

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.

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Project

Community College CBE 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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Advancing Racial Equity

Advancing Racial Equity: Year Two Review

We seek to make advancing racial equity our custom, our habit — a central organizing principle that becomes part of every EdSystems internal practice and every project in our portfolio. Learn how we’ve worked to model action-orientated racial equity this past year.

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I-WIN Events

WBL Continuum in D214’s Business Pathway

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.

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I-WIN Events

Energy Conservation School-Based Enterprise

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.

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Resource

Transitional Math Resources

Recordings of professional learning sessions for administrators, teachers and counselors to help prepare for implementation of transitional math and state portability submission.

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Resource

HB3296/Public Act 102-0917 Brief

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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Resource

Dual Credit Survey Briefs

In 2021, a team including EdSystems conducted a broad survey of key secondary and postsecondary stakeholders about dual credit in Illinois. Download the three survey briefs which include quantitative and qualitative findings.

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News

Governor Signs HB3296/Public Act 102-0917, Advancing on PWR Act

Governor Pritzker signed Public Act 102-0917 (HB3296) into law on May 27, 2022. HB3296 builds from the 2016 Postsecondary and Workforce Readiness (PWR) Act and many years of dedicated work by communities statewide to develop and implement high-quality college and career pathways systems that ensure students are prepared for whatever comes after high school. 

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Project

Illinois Math Badging Initiative

In partnership with XQ Institute and Student Achievement Partners, EdSystems is launching an initiative to create an Illinois high school math badging system as an alternative credentialing mechanism wherein students can certify learning gained through a broad range of sources including coursework, independent study, summer school, and work-based learning.

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News

EdSystems Joins Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s Accelerate ED, Launches Accelerated Model Pathways for Information Technology

EdSystems is proud to announce our participation in Accelerate ED: Seamless Pathways to Degrees and Careers, an initiative that seeks to blur the lines between high school and higher education and career learning experiences, allowing students to earn a career-aligned credential or degree by the end of one additional year after high school.

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Project

Scaling Transformative Advanced Manufacturing Pathways (STAMP)

Through a community of practice and technical assistance to regional teams, STAMP serves secondary students enrolled in manufacturing pathways that articulate to community college programs and employment opportunities, with a particular focus on under-represented students with one or more barriers to education, training, and employment.

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Thought Leadership

Shifting the Narrative Student Voice Accomplishments

Chicago Public Schools’ CBE pilots has released “Shifting Chicago Narratives,” a four-part series of student-produced videos aimed at shifting the narrative from a focus on all that students lost through the pandemic to what they gained.

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Project

Chicago Early Childhood Integrated Data System

Launched in 2022, the Chicago Early Childhood Integrated Data System (CECIDS) is integrating data across systems and programs to enable creation of more timely and actionable data analyses and products that serve families, program administrators, funders, advocates and policymakers.

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Project

Postsecondary Leadership Series

In support of the OneGoal team and their Postsecondary Leadership Series, the EdSystems team is providing two primary services: 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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Advancing Racial Equity

Equitably College, Career, and Monopoly Ready

From Senior Fellow Ginger M. Reynolds, PhD: I admit that the phrase “college and career ready” gives me pause, particularly with respect to students who aren’t well served through our current system. I like the analogy of Monopoly…”

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I-WIN Events

WBL Continuum in Manufacturing

This convening focused on experiences along the work-based learning continuum in the manufacturing sector, with guest presenters from Ridgewood High School and the Illinois Manufacturer’s Association.

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