Career Pathways in Action offers a detailed exploration of the Pathways to Prosperity Network's efforts at state, regional, and local levels through five case studies across the United States. The cases include efforts to scale up strategic partnerships; balance state policies with particular regional needs and circumstances; and ensure postsecondary success.
While the programs vary significantly from one another, they all involve cooperation between political, business, and educational institutions. The cases provide practical models for partnerships that can best serve young people and the industries in which they hope to find rewarding work. "Career Pathways in Action takes the goal of collaboration across K-12, higher education, and industry to the next level. The case studies detail how states and regions unpack the challenges of developing pathways with real value in the marketplace. Career pathways succeed as they reinforce the relevance of course studies and skills for success in the world of work."Robert B. Schwartz is Professor of Practice Emeritus and Senior Research Fellow at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, and Professor in Residence at JFF. Before joining the HGSE faculty in 1996, Schwartz served in a variety of roles in education, from high school teacher and principal to education adviser to the mayor of Boston and the governor of Massachusetts to founding president of Achieve, Inc. In 2011, he coauthored Pathways to Prosperity: Meeting the Challenge of Preparing Young Americans for the 21st Century, the report that led to the founding of the Pathways to Prosperity Network. In 2017, he coauthored with Nancy Hoffman Learning for Careers, The Pathways to Prosperity Network (Harvard Education Press).
Amy Loyd is vice president at JFF and leads the Pathways to Prosperity and college and career pathways work. In this role, she guides states and regions in developing and scaling effective policies, infrastructure, and practices to build sustainable systems of college and career pathways aligned with regional labor markets. Before joining JFF, Amy led a public-private partnership network of K-12 schools providing culturally responsive education and wraparound services to Alaska Native and American Indian students and their families.