Foundations of Career Connected Learning Course

This course, previously known as the Pathways Leadership Essentials Course), is a six-week hybrid course with Hans Meeder, president of NC3T and author of The Power and Promise of Pathways, and other NC3T instructors. During this course, you will develop your knowledge and skills in all the foundational elements of developing and implementing a Career Connected Learning approach for your school and/or district. In addition to experiencing live and recorded content with Mr. Meeder, you will have access to a user-friendly online learning platform to guide you through the course, and which provides access to an extensive array of readings, templates, and resources that accompany each session. Each participant will also receive a copy of The Power and Promise of Pathways publication mailed to them at the shipping address they provide.

The course covers the following topics:

• Week 1: Students will complete a Career Connected Learning Diagnostic tool that will help shape the trajectory of their learning in this course. Students will also be introduced to Career Connected Learning, CTE Program Improvement, and Pathways System Framework. Students will also learn key ideas about personal and organizational leadership and how these concepts play a critical role in a successful initiative.
• Week 2: Students will be challenged to think about possible strategies to engage their stakeholders in a discussion on how to proceed with their identified Career Connected Learning structure.
• Weeks 3 & 4: During these two weeks, students will work independently of their team and identify how their role supports their identified Career Connected Learning structure. Students will also have access to a selection of optional modules to support their role-a-like learning.
• Week 5: Students will explore the added value of engaging business and industry partners in their Career Connected Learning structure.
• Week 6: The final week of this course will have students put together a Career Connected Learning implementation plan paying close attention to how they can embed career development opportunities across their organization.

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Self-Paced Pathways Leadership Essentials Course

During this self-paced on-demand course, Hans Meeder, president of NC3T and author of The Power and Promise of Pathways will guide your learning via recorded videos and a dedicated platform offering supplemental resources to learn on your own schedule.

This course includes eight recorded workshops with Hans Meeder and other NC3T instructors where you will develop your knowledge and skills in all the essentials of leading the development and improvement of a true College and Career Pathways System.

In addition to the recorded workshops with Mr. Meeder, you will have access to a user-friendly online learning platform to guide you through the course, and also provide access to an extensive array of readings, templates, and resources that accompany each session. This self-paced course will be accessible for a period of four months after your initial purchase.  Each participant will also receive a copy of The Power and Promise of Pathways mailed to them at the shipping address they provide (so you may want to add your home shipping address at checkout).

The course covers the following topics:

• Session 1: Communicating the Why and the How for Pathways
• Session 2: Strengthening Your Leadership Capacity
• Session 3: Designing Your Career Pathways System Structure
• Session 4: Creating the Profile of a Career and Life Ready Learner
• Session 5: Embedding Career Development Across Your Systems
• Session 6: Engaging Employers and Community Organizations as Full Partners
• Session 7: Designing and Upgrading Your Pathway Programs & Supporting Teaching Excellence
• Session 8: Creating Your Pathways Implementation Plan

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Finding and Engaging Employer Partners

One of the biggest challenges in CTE is finding partners to support your work-based learning efforts and drive your advisory board. Most people feel uncomfortable making cold calls, and educators are no exception, so we put off that outreach work as long as we can. However, there are partnership development strategies that don’t involve those dreaded cold calls, and there is an established process for turning those prospects into committed partners and advocates. In this course, Brett Pawlowski of NC3T, lead author of The Employer Engagement Toolkit, will share with you simple and effective strategies for identifying prospective employer partners, establishing a relationship, and getting a commitment.

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