Career Ready Connections
Winter 2021
A message from Career Ready PA
It is hard to believe that winter is beginning and holiday break is near! Please seek out new opportunities for learners and educators on the Career Ready PA Coalition webpage. Students and families will find career awareness opportunities to experience with one of our many stakeholders!
Don't forget that our Career Ready PA regional liaisons are here to support you with training and resources. If you don't know your region, you can use the regions map located on the Career Ready PA page.
And, for upcoming events, join the Career Readiness Learning Community on SAS. The Career Ready Liaisons are constantly adding statewide events.
- Resources are available at SAS for Career Readiness.
- Join our Career Readiness Learning Community. (PDE SAS login is required.)
- Career Ready PA is PDE’s source for guidance and resources.
Career Ready PA Central Regions (5, 6, 9) Spotlight
Region 5 - SOLE SLAM: Students Explore Local Opportunities with Industry Partners
During NEPA Ecosystem’s Celebration of STEM in Industry, BLaST Intermediate Unit 17 partnered with StartSOLE, local districts, and industry partners to host Pennsylvania’s first-ever SOLE Slam. Juniors at Canton Area High School explored the question “What skills, experiences, and information would you need to become more aware of opportunities that exist for you in your community after you graduate?” Eighth graders from Southern Tioga School District explored the question “What does the future of work look like in Tioga County?”
Students engaged with industry partners to answer these questions. Students enjoyed learning from construction workers, electricians, game commissioners, and more during these events. For more information on how to host one of these events, email Rebecca Gibboney at rgibboney@iu17.org.
Region 9 - Career Ready Lancaster! Connecting People with Careers
Career Ready Lancaster (CRL!) is a successful career pathways partnership linking students to careers through collaboration with education, business, and community groups. On October 22, 2021, the full CRL! stakeholder committee met to share newly developed website resources and celebrate their progress.
The structure of Career Ready Lancaster’s volunteer network has been critical to its success and continued momentum. Peter Haddick, a regional Career Ready PA Coalition “Employer Champion” from CNH Industrial (CNHi), drives accountability and organization. “Workforce Champion,” Lancaster County Workforce Development Board, sponsors Career Ready Lancaster. The three CRL! Subcommittees are co-led by one business and one education leader, and they include 1) Career Readiness, 2) Employer Engagement, and 3) Marketing. The committee structure is designed to remove education and business silos. For more information, visit https://careerreadylancaster.com/.
Central PA Chamber of Commerce Hosts Career Fairs
The Central PA Chamber of Commerce in Milton County recently hosted career fairs at Milton Area and Warrior Run School Districts in Northumberland and Union Counties. Over 600 Milton middle-high students and over 700 Warrior Run middle-high school students engaged with local businesses and postsecondary institutions to learn about college and career pathways. Host booths included T. Ross Brothers Construction, Geisinger, Knoebels, UPMC, and Furmano Foods. The fair also represented smaller employers like Java Momma coffee company and the cosmetic business Calculated Design Company. Postsecondary institutions included the Pennsylvania College of Technology, Pennsylvania State University, and McCann School of Business and Technology. PA Career Link and the Army National Guard also offered students the opportunity to learn about career pathways.
The Central PA Chamber also sponsors additional programs for students in career and workforce readiness. The “Building Leaders for the Susquehanna Valley” (BLSV) program develops leadership and communication skills. The Chamber also sponsors the School Counts! Initiative, giving students the opportunity to earn a local credential for meeting academic and personal goals. Local business is encouraged to use the School Counts! achievement credential as part of their evaluation for high school job applicants. For more information about these career fairs, BLSV, or the School Counts! initiative, contact mporter@centralpachamber.com.
Career Ready PA Coalition
In October, the Coalition reconvened to celebrate work group best practices and to prioritize “Equity in Education” with a presentation from Dr. Nikole Hollins-Sims, Special Assistant to the Secretary. Johnsonburg Area School District shared their Teacher in the Workplace grant partnership with Snap On to implement industry credentials through teacher professional development and program development. Both Indiana Area and Ephrata Area school districts shared their workforce and employability skills district programs—Indiana County Ready and Ephrata’s Life Ready Graduate. Career pathway best practices highlighted the Simcoach Games game development and employability skills internship and Temple University’s preapprenticeship initiatives. The Coalition met again in December to dive into work group priorities for 2022. Best practice monthly webinars this fall included NuPaths, Equity, and Preapprenticeship/Apprenticeship and will continue in 2022. To learn more, check out the Career Ready PA Coalition website. Career and workforce readiness are integral to developing equitable access to career pathways for all Pennsylvania learners, through effective workforce training, aligned to workforce needs and departmental career readiness initiatives.
Remake Learning Days Across America (RLDAA) Festival, May 12-23, 2022/Career Ready PA Backpack Challenge
Remake Learning Days Across America is an innovative learning festival for families and youth! Taking root in regions across the nation, these hands-on and engaging events are designed for kids of all ages at libraries, schools, tech centers, museums, play spaces, community centers and more. Once again, PDE will elevate these events through the Career Ready PA Backpack Challenge. Students will have an opportunity to earn a digital badge for their career portfolio by participating in events tagged with a “Career Ready PA Backpack Challenge.” Schools can register for the Backpack Challenge in March 2022. Your Career Ready PA liaison will be sending schools information on how to register and participate in virtual and live events. To learn more, check out the Remake Learning Days website in January 2022!
The Coalition and Career Ready PA are hosting a series of monthly webinars highlighting career pathways, resources, and best practices. Educators can view our upcoming webinars and register online on our Eventbrite page. Recordings of the webinars, as well as materials shared during the sessions, can be found on our Career Ready PA Coalition page under Career Ready Webinars.
Updates and Trainings from PDE
Act 158
Act 158 of 2018 (Act 158) provides alternatives to Pennsylvania’s statewide requirement of attaining proficiency on the three end-of-course Keystone Exams (Algebra I, Literature, and Biology) in order for a student to achieve statewide graduation requirements. Effective with the graduating class of 2023, students have the option to demonstrate postsecondary preparedness through one of four additional pathways that more fully illustrate college, career, and community readiness. PDE offered a series of trainings and office hours from September through December. Trainings and recorded webinars can be accessed at the PDE website. The toolkit and its related resources are designed to provide guidance as a result of the enactments of Act 158 and Act 6 of 2017 (Act 6), which established alternative pathways to meeting statewide graduation requirements for students who are Career and Technical Education (CTE) concentrators. For more information, visit the Act 158 Pathways to Graduation Toolkit webpage.