Women2Women - Summer 2018 - 36
A MODEL OF COLLABORATION:
BERKS COUNTY CAREER
PATHWAYS ALLIANCE
While all Berks County school districts have
been working to support the development
of their students' college and career readiness, educators have realized a collaborative
approach will maximize these standalone
efforts. In the winter of 2017, leadership
members from Berks County school districts, Berks County Workforce Development
Board, Berks Business Education Coalition,
Greater Reading Chamber Alliance, Northeast
Berks Chamber of Commerce, Reading Area
Community College, and RM Palmer attended
a Leadership Forum led by the Berks County
Intermediate Unit (BCIU) and facilitated by
the National Center for College and Career
Transitions (NC3T) with funding from the
Pennsylvania Department of Education. This
meeting formalized the Berks County Career
Pathways Alliance.
The purpose of the Alliance is not to command a "one-size-fits-all" countywide career
pathways model. Rather, it is to offer a framework of well-researched recommendations
and support to enhance and expand K-12
career education. Presently, all Berks County
school districts and both career and technical
centers have joined the Alliance along with
post-secondary representatives, employers,
and workforce development partners.
COLLEGE & CAREER READY LEARNERS
CONTINUUM OF CAREER EDUCATION
Career Awareness (K-5)
Career Exploration & Career Plan (6-8)
Career Planning & Preparation (9-12)
clusters, and the Alliance recommends that
districts organize their high school pathways
around them.
While college preparation has always been
an integral and key component of K-12
education, career awareness and planning is a
more recent focus. Pennsylvania has adopted
Career Education and Work Standards requiring all districts to develop a K-12 Guidance
Plan (Chapter 339) and has expanded career
and technical education programs of study
that align with in-demand careers. At the
federal level, the Every Student Succeeds
Act (ESSA) has replaced the No Child Left
Behind legislation. In September 2017, the
Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE)
submitted its required ESSA plan, which
includes K-12 career readiness accountability
measures and a proposed report card, Future
Ready PA Index.
Pennsylvania's career and technical education (CTE) has come a long way since
its "vo-tech" days. State-approved technical
programs combine college preparation with
real-world career skill development, giving
students a jumpstart on both post-secondary
education and careers. For those who choose to
go directly into the workplace, CTE graduates
are far better prepared to enter a skilled career
rather than a low-skilled, minimum wage
job with little room for advancement. CTE
graduates have relevant and highly marketable, employable skills and earn at least one
industry-recognized credential, giving them
a competitive edge in entering high-skill,
high-wage careers.
REAL WORLD OPPORTUNITIES
Learning academic and technical skills
is one thing, and one very important thing
at that. However, applying those skills in
The continuum of career education picreal-world work experiences is where stutured below offers a broad view of a K-12 CAREER AND TECHNICAL
dents make the connection between today's
approach to preparing graduates to be college EDUCATION: A NEW VISION
learning and tomorrow's future careers.
and career ready. At the high school level,
Berks County is fortunate to have two Work-based learning experiences may last
students may enroll in a career pathway - a
sequence of courses centered around a career outstanding career and technical centers - from a few hours to a few weeks and include
cluster. In a career pathway model, students Berks Career and Technology Center job shadow experiences; internships; and a
are not asked to choose a specific career; (BCTC) and Reading Muhlenberg Career multitude of programs involving business
rather, they are given opportunities to explore and Technology Center (RMCTC), offering mentoring, speakers' series, career fairs, and
career areas. The Pennsylvania Department STEM-related career pathways for in-demand, much more! One of the priority objectives
set by the Alliance is to provide internship
of Education has identified five broad career high-wage careers.
experiences for students attending all Berks
County high schools. Presently, 13 of the
HIGH SCHOOL PATHWAYS
18 Berks County public high schools offer
an internship component, up from just
three high schools three years ago. During
BUSINESS,
ENGINEERING
FINANCE &
ARTS &
the 2017-2018 schoolyear (first semester),
& INDUSTRY
HUMAN SERVICES
SCIENCE & HEALTH
INFORMATION
COMMUNICATION
TECHNOLOGY
228 students from across 13 schools engaged
TECHNOLOGY
in internships, learning first-hand about a
business or other profession. In addition
POST-SECONDARY OPTIONS
to work-based learning experiences, stu4 Year / 2 Year / Technical School / Apprenticeship / OJT / Military
dents engage in experiences provided by
post-secondary institutions such as seminars
36 Women2Women Summer 2018
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