K12 Strong Workforce Program (K12 SWP), California
CTE (Career Technical Education)

• Exploring Your Potential’s series of four courses designed to assist students in identifying and leveraging their best options for experience, employment, and entrepreneurship. These courses facilitate student exploration and selection of learning opportunities leading to career paths.

• Through scaffolding activities, each of Exploring Your Potential’s online courses supports students in developing the necessary knowledge, skills, attitudes and actions to demonstrate strategic planning and competent decision making regarding their career advancement, building foundational career path skills and knowledge essential to subsequent success in college and early career exploration

• Each of Exploring Your Potential’s online courses guide students in structuring pathways and achieving career goals, enabling a seamless and successful transition from secondary to postsecondary education within the same or related career paths.

• The EYP Program is based on six core competencies, Self-Awareness, Problem-Solving, Decision Making, Career Orientation, Strategic Planning, and Execution, which can prepare students upon completion of education to enter into employment in occupations for which there is documented demand and which pay a livable wage.

• Among the many allowable uses of K12 SWP funds, these are particularly well-suited to Explore Your Potential’s program for students:
• • Explore Your Potential can be incorporated into the program of studies as a new CTE course or an independent study.
  • With EYP courses embedded into existing courses, the existing CTE programs and courses can be retooled and expanded to include competencies like Self-Awareness, Problem Solving, Decision-Making, Career Orientation, Strategic Planning, and Execution.
  • EYP’s rich library of industry-based content allows schools to utilize industry expertise in secondary learning and bring industry staff voices and perspectives into K-12 classrooms with low to no barrier to entry.
• Exploring Your Potential helps K-12 LEAs meet the K12 SWP metrics for success by helping students find the CTE program of study that is best suited to their interests and abilities, better promoting their ability to complete two or more CTE courses in high school in that same program of study, including courses that may include early college credit, work-based learning or third-party certification.

• RFA-specific language:
  • Application Section 5: Collaborative Partner: List the Collaborative Partner name and identify partner type and their proposed role for this CTE Pathway/Program Plan. Include name, phone, and email. (Contact information must be provided for each Partner.)
    • (Collaborative Partner(s) Type includes: Businesses, community organizations, industry organizations, philanthropic organizations, workforce development agencies, and government agencies, among others.)
    • Collaborative Partner Role includes: Fiscal/financial contribution, partnership and subject-matter expertise, curriculum development/ alignment, work-based learning experiences for students, and externship experience for educators and administrators, among others.
  • Application Section 8b: K14 Pathway Quality Strategies
    Please identify which of the following four K14 Pathway Quality Strategies (Strategies) will be addressed by the proposed CTE Program/Pathway work.
    • Curriculum and Instruction
    • College and Career Exploration
    • Postsecondary Transition
    • Work-Based Learning

It is acceptable for the proposed work to focus on only one Strategy. In fact, applications that focus on one Strategy with clear and thorough plans for improving its programs or pathways are valued over applications that identify several Strategies that do not have clear and thorough implementation plans.

• Application Section 8c. c. CTE Pathway/Program Work Plan

The CTE Pathway/Program Work Plan is a requirement of the application. Use the CTE Pathway/Program Work Plan to describe the activities and strategies that will be implemented to address the Problem Statement and to achieve the Project Objectives. For each K14 Pathway Quality Strategy (i.e., Curriculum and Instruction, College and Career Exploration, Postsecondary Transition, Work-Based Learning) that is the focus of this work (selected earlier in the application), you will provide:

• A. Description of work funded by K12 SWP
• B. List of project activities and expected outcomes
• C. Partner role and responsibilities
• D. Number of students and/or teachers to be served and the way in which they will be served
• E. Justification for requested funds (Return on Investment)