Breaking Barriers, Building Pathways: The Impact of Career Connect Washington

At Career Connect Washington (CCW), we work to ensure a bright future for Washington’s young people by seamlessly integrating education and onsite work experiences and providing multiple pathways toward education, economic self-sufficiency, and fulfillment.

That begins with acknowledging the historical impact of systemic barriers, especially on Black and Indigenous students, and ensuring equitable access to career connected learning programs. To set every young person up for success, we intentionally focus on populations furthest from opportunity, especially students of color, Indigenous students, low-income students, rural students, and students with disabilities.

With that in mind, this blog will explore the work CCW does behind the scenes to build a robust network of career connected learning opportunities throughout Washington state. Our efforts include distributing funding for innovative programs through the support of state and federal funds; collecting real-life success stories from recent graduates and current participants in Career Explore, Career Prep, and Career Launch programs; and working to expand our network by disseminating crucial outreach materials to employers, educators, program builders, and young people.

The power of career connected learning

Meet Cynthia Serna-Delgado, a first-generation high school graduate and college student whose educational journey embodies the transformative power of career connected learning. Through the Sno-Isle TECH Skills Center, Cynthia gained hands-on experience with fabrics and sewing and a broader perspective on opportunities beyond high school. She’s now thriving as a student at Seattle Pacific University, where she is majoring in fashion design and merchandising and pursuing a minor in business administration.

Cynthia’s experience is just one of many success stories highlighting the significant strides we are making toward our equity goal of ensuring that the demographics of participants in Career Launch programs match that of local high school graduating classes.

Continuous growth across CCW programs

CCW’s statewide education and employer network is rapidly growing to meet the rising demand for high-quality academic and work-based learning experiences. There are more than 19,000 young people enrolled in Career Launch programs currently, an 18% increase from 2021-2022.

In the past four years, we have also witnessed a steady rise in Black and Indigenous student enrollment in career connected learning programs, and Hispanic/Latinx student enrollment has surged from 11% in previous school years to 23% in 2022-23. Additionally, female-identifying student enrollment also climbed from 23% to 38% during the same period.

Outreach materials ready for use

Effective outreach materials act as a bridge between funding opportunities, program information, and action. CCW has invested in meeting the growing need for outreach materials. From videos to social media graphics, there are numerous resources and tools available to help our partners create, present, and share information about the impact of career connected learning programs. Below is a rundown of the various materials available for use today.

Funding messaging
To help partners share information about CCW funding opportunities, we developed PowerPoint slides and an informational one-pager in both English and Spanish. These materials can be tailored and added to partner presentations as needed.

We also developed social media graphics for Facebook, Instagram, and Linkedin to communicate opportunities during funding cycles. These materials are available for download and use across social media channels.

What is Career Connected Learning?
We developed a one-pager highlighting the three types of programs: Career Explore, Career Prep, and Career Launch. This one-pager is available to use digitally or print and is available in Spanish.

Videos
To convey career connected learning impact stories, we captured meaningful experiences of students and young people across Washington state. These stories showcase their journeys, accomplishments, and future aspirations and spotlight various sectors and learning opportunities.

Elevating career connected learning programs

Photo courtesy of AJAC: Advanced Manufacturing Apprenticeships.

It is clear that the mission of Career Connect Washington is resonating deeply. 91% of Washington voters surveyed by College Promise Coalition in 2023 agree that “we should provide career connected learning programs and apprenticeship opportunities connected to earning degrees and credentials.”

We want to thank our partners, who work daily to make a difference for young people in our state by expanding access to career-focused educational opportunities. We look forward to working with you to continue growing the network of opportunities across Washington state in 2024 – and beyond.