Pennsylvania has a fragmented, underfunded high school career-related education system. This undercuts success in college and careers for hundreds of thousands of students annually, while exacerbating skill shortages for businesses and throttling Pennsylvania's economy. Pennsylvania also has a legislature that supports career-related education on…

Exploring Summer Youth Employment Programs: Increasing Access Through Career Pathways builds the case and provides actionable recommendations for state-led support in the intentional alignment of summer youth employment programs (SYEP) with career pathways and the work-based learning continuum, including through Career Technical Education (CTE).…

At the intersection of college and work is a complex transition that graduates face every day. Lower levels of college to career transition self-efficacy (CTSE) and lower levels of perceived adulthood may cause a more difficult transition. In this mixed-method study we sought to better understand the relationships among perceived adulthood, CTSE,…

This Special Report outlines state-level policy components that help ensure work-based learning opportunities for high school students are well-coordinated, broadly accessible, aligned to state or regional workforce demands, and of high quality.

Social networking sites such as Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter are widely regarded as an exciting opportunity to communicate with friends, especially for college students. The overall response to social networking tends to be one of trust regarding a generation that, supposedly has many friends but little sense of privacy. Employers use social…

Purpose: To describe a project that introduces middle school and high school students living in Pennsylvania's rural geographic regions to nursing careers through outreach extended to students regardless of gender, ethnicity, or socioeconomic status. Method: The authors employed many strategies to inform students about careers in nursing. The…

On October 25, 2006, the Academic Standards for Career Education and Work (CEW) were introduced to the public as a component of the Pennsylvania School Code. Developed by an expert panel of academic and career and technical educators, guidance counselors, persons from the business community, and several governmental agencies, these standards were…

This newsletter of best practices describes steps that schools have taken to establish a guidance and advisement system that helps students plan for and succeed in students high school, further study and careers. Articles in this issue include: (1) Advisory Program Boosts Achievement and Career Planning; (2) District-Wide Guidance Program Assists…

Fifth graders in suburban Philadelphia school districts spend a week at a vo-tech school exploring occupations through hands-on activities. Academic concepts are tied to vocational areas, demonstrating how classroom theory applies to the world of work. Vocational and academic teachers also learn from each other's methods. (SK)

An evaluation was conducted of the Harrisburg (Pennsylvania) Experience-Based Career Education (EBCE) program at the end of its second year of implementation. Evaluation data were collected in the following ways: regular meetings with project staff; on-site observations of program activities; results from pre and posttesting students; inspection…

An evaluation was conducted of the Harrisburg (Pennsylvania) experience-based career education (EBCE) program at the end of a three-year operating period. Evaluation data were collected in the following ways: (1) regular meetings with the project coordinator and EBCE staff; (2) on-site observations of program activities; (3) results from pre- and…

The evaluation of an exemplary career resource center (CRC) developed for the Wyoming Valley West School District, Kingston, Pennsylvania, is presented. Questionnaires were used to assess the CRC in terms of information collection, evaluation and storage, client usage, and attitudinal factors and were completed by approximately 1,000 seventh and…

This article describes the establishment of Individual Development through Employment, Assessment, and Learning (IDEAL), a summer transition program for adolescents with blindness or visual impairments in Pennsylvania. The program emphasizes independence, work exploration, and social skills development. Data from participants, parents, and staff…

Reforms funded by the School-to-Work Opportunities Act (STWOA) were enacted to help USA students learn career-related skills and prepare for entry into careers or post-secondary education. Information about the effectiveness of these reforms is critical to address students' career preparation needs and inform future policy. Yet few quantitative…

Each summer since 1990, a select group of Pennsylvania high school students has taken part in the Pennsylvania Governor's School for Teaching (PGST), held at Millersville University. The school is dedicated solely to the profession of teaching and brings together sophomores and juniors who have expressed an interest in teaching as a career. This…