Goal-setting plays a significant role in one's life and contributes to one's success (Locke & Latham, 2012, 2006, 1990). As high school students approach the end of their K-12 education, they benefit from setting goals and planning for their future. They also profit from strategizing and designing an action plan that delineates how they will achieve their goals (Snyder, 1991). In this narrative study, 12 co-researchers, who were incarcerated at the time of the interview, shared their stories regarding education and career goal-setting. The co-researchers had graduated from high school and were embarking on their postsecondary lives. Both narratives and found poems (Cahnmann, 2003; Shenfield & Prendergast, 2002; Sjollema et al., 2012), a form of poetic transcription, were used to express the co-researchers' experiences. Not surprisingly, the school-to-prison pipeline presented itself in the stories of these young adults (Dutil, 2020; Monahan et al., 2014; Redfield & Nance, 2016; Skiba et al., 2014). Significantly, the co-researchers experienced exclusionary, discriminatory practices in their K-12 education. Findings revealed that the co-researchers had few K-12 experiences that helped them plan for their futures. Some had an idea of the career they wanted to pursue, but they possessed vague plans as to how they would seek their desired career goal. The implications and recommendations for policies and practices are discussed based on the findings. Recommendations include the teaching of career development throughout all K-12 grades and the teaching of pedagogy of hope (Freire, 1997; hooks, 2003). Poems and art inspired by the interactions between the researcher and the co-researchers conclude this project (Bhattacharya, 2022). [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]