Permeable pathways: Will students go for work-first, college-later options?

"College for all" is out. Career pathways are in. Has the pendulum swung too far?, asks Fordham's Michael Petrilli on Schooled. Are we discouraging students who might succeed in college from giving it a try? Exaggerating the payoffs from technical training?

Students need "permeable" pathways, says Laura Slover. "A student should be able to pursue career-connected opportunities without closing the door to college, just as a college-bound student should have opportunities to develop skills, experiences, and credentials with labor-market value."

We already have many post-secondary options, though they can be hard to navigate, responds Stanford's Mike Kirst.

Petrilli likes Maryland’s Blueprint, which lets students choose a career path in 11th grade, if they've "demonstrated a solid base of traditional knowledge and skills." But he concedes David Griffith's point: Our high schools don't have the capacity to design "literally hundreds of high-quality pathways that will help kids land literally thousands of ostensibly in-demand jobs that are constantly evolving in ways policymakers cannot possibly anticipate."

Indiana is promoting a work-before-college option, reports Aleksandra Appleton on Chalkbeat. Students would start internships or apprenticeships in high school, get some work experience and then decide if they want more training or a college credential.

Indiana Career Apprenticeship Programs, or INCAP, launched this year to train high schoolers and adults for jobs in fields like banking, construction, and advanced manufacturing. The community college system, Ivy Tech, "will focus on workforce development and growing more programs that are paid for by employers," writes Appleton.

INCAP hopes its credentials will be honored by employers and by state universities. The forthcoming Indiana Qualifications Framework "will categorize every degree and credential program in the state into levels that show what skills students have," write Appleton. In theory, that will make INCAP credentials transferable to new employers and to state colleges and universities.

“Apprenticeship, when linked well, can be a sort of different route into postsecondary education that allows young people to get different skills before they’re asked to make very expensive and consequential decision," said Taylor White of New America.

Florida's workforce training model, envisions career credentials as part of higher education, not an alternative, writes Christopher Morales on the Martin Center site. Get There Florida encourages young people to earn a credential and start work, then stack credentials as needed. Some will go on to "associate, bachelor’s, master’s, or other advanced study." The idea is that nobody's locked into a narrow job track. It's a first step.