Career Advising & Navigation

We’ve invested heavily in pathways—and still LEAVE too many learners to figure them out alone.

Advising is the missing link between pathways and outcomes. Across sessions, explore how leaders are embedding career navigation into coursework, work-based learning experiences and postsecondary advising, while strengthening transitions from high school to college and beyond. From frameworks focused on agency and purpose to strategies that explore purpose-driven pathways, this strand tackles what it takes to help learners move forward with clarity. 

CONNECT THE CONVERSATION

Strengthening career advising and navigation takes more than one approach. See how sessions across the conference explore the policies, partnerships, data, and practices needed to help learners and earners navigate pathways to opportunity.

EXPLORE THE AGENDA

Strengthening Career Navigation: Connecting Policy, Practice and Lived Experience

Moderator: Michelle Camacho Liu, Director of Program & Policy, The Attainment Network 

Jonathan Cowan, Chief Strategy Officer, One Goal

David Ford, Vice President, Quality Coaching, State Initiatives, Strada Education Foundation

Chelsea Miller, Associate Director, UpSkill America, Economic. Opportunities Program, The Aspen Institute 

Cherri McKinney, STAR, from Opportunity @ Work 

This session brings together national thought leaders and learners themselves to explore what it takes to design advising and navigation systems that are coherent, equitable, and outcomes-driven. The session will begin with a fireside chat with a STAR (Skilled Through Alternative Routes) learner, grounding the conversation in a real-world perspective on navigating complex systems and accessing opportunity. Panelists will then build on that perspective, exploring emerging trends in advising and navigation, including innovation, belonging, and meaning-making.

ACCELERATING CAREER PATHWAYS & WBL - Integrating Quality Frameworks, Youth Voice, and State Tools for Regional Impact

Sponsored by  Colorado Workforce Development Council

Presenters: Thomas Hartman, Colorado Workforce Development Council

Discover practical strategies for integrating high-quality work-based learning into career pathway programs aligned to Colorado's workforce needs.

Building Bridges to Opportunity: An Overview of Workforce Services and Programming

Presenters: Larisa Romagnoli, Sarah Pompeii, Arapahoe / Douglas Works!

Gain a practical overview of successful workforce services, programs, and partnership opportunities.

Building and scaling the CUNY ASAP Model Across Colorado

Presenters: Crystal Annan, Alison Grendhal, Colorado Department of Higher Education, Brandy Baze-Ballard, Colorado Mountain College

Learn lessons from Colorado's effort to expand a proven student success model through coordinated supports and innovative funding strategies. 

Building Climate Career Pathways from Schools to Community Ecosystems

Presenters: Samantha Agoos, Colorado Department of Education; Hayley Reynolds, Climate Democracy Initiative

Explore strategies for connecting classroom learning, community priorities, and youth leadership to build locally relevant climate career pathways.

Building Green Pathways: A Toolkit for Embedding Sustainability and Durable Skills into Career-Connected Learning

Presenters: Elizabeth Harbaugh, Lyra Colorado; Kelly Mitchell, Inclusive Design Group

Learn how to integrate in-demand green and durable skills into existing career-connected learning pathways using a ready-to-use educator toolkit.

From Policy to Practice: Colorado’s Post-Secondary and Workforce Readiness Landscape

Presenters: Anne Laesecke, Danielle Ongart, Michelle Romero, Colorado Department of Education

Explore key updates to Colorado's postsecondary and workforce readiness policies and their implications for local practice.

From Research to practice: creating a coherent college & Career Advising Strategy centering student agency

Presenters: Kevin McNulty, Denver Scholarship Foundation & Dr. Ryan Burton, DSST Public Schools

See how integrated college and career advising helps students make more informed postsecondary decisions.

Leveraging CTE Centers to Build CE Credential Pathways

Presenters: Tara Bell, Cherry Creek School District, Shari Culver, Arapahoe Community College, Dana Levesque, Littleton Public Schools

Explore how Career and Technical Education centers are expanding access to college credentials while creating stronger pathways into high-demand careers.

Make It Work! Launching ISPs and SBEs Where Industry Partnerships Are Limited

Presenters: Katie Kraft, Kate Wagner, Colorado Education Initiative

Hear how Colorado districts are using Industry Sponsored Projects and School-Based Enterprises to create high-quality career-connected learning experiences with limited employer access.

Making the Big Three Work: Why Essential Skills Are the Missing Link for an AI-driven Workplace

Presenters: Jill Hrnicek, Junior Achievement - Rocky Mountain; Justin Beets, UMB Bank; Duane Roberson, Colorado Springs Schools D11

Discover practical strategies for embedding and measuring durable skills as a core component of postsecondary and workforce readiness. 

Preparing Young People to Flourish in an AI-Shaped Labor Market

Presenters: James Cryan, Willow Education, Amanda Kanekuni, OneGoal, Scott Laband, Colorado Succeeds, Zach Rahn, Aurora Public Schools, Natalie Rubio, Rocky Mountain Prep

Explore how education and workforce leaders are preparing young people to succeed in an AI-driven economy.

Scaling Career-Connected Learning: Integrating Career Readiness into Curriculum and Student Employment

Presenters: Alexi Ginther, Sarah Trzeciak, and Danny Young, University of Colorado Denver

Learn how career readiness is being embedded into curriculum and student employment to strengthen workforce outcomes.

Supporting Districts Through Implementation of Colorado’s Big Three

Presenters: Sara Butler, Empower Schools; Michelle Camacho Liu, The Attainment Network; Katherine Novinski, The Colorado Education Initiative

Discover how data, change management, and cross-sector collaboration can strengthen Big Three implementation and impact.

The Two-Way Street of Modern Matching: Inside the New Connecting Colorado

Presenters: Stephanie Mufic, Julie Palacios, Colorado Department of Labor and Employment

Explore how Colorado's modernized Connecting Colorado platform is helping learners and job seekers translate skills into career opportunities through smarter matching and career pathway tools.

PROUDLY SPONSORED BY