Beyond One-Size-Fits-All: A School Story of Personalized Career Pathways

During National Charter School Week, we had the opportunity to chat with Dana Van Deinse, Director of Partnership and Growth at Edkey, about the organization’s unique approach to career and technical education (CTE). 

Edkey® Inc. is a non-profit organization serving schools in niche communities throughout Arizona. Each Edkey school provides individualized CTE programming matched to the needs of students and their local communities. The goal: improving the quality of life for both individuals and families by ensuring every student has a next step — whether that’s college, CTE, industry certification, or the military.

According to Van Deinse, school leaders must get “unstuck” from rigid, traditional models of career education. “The key in working with today’s kids is flexibility and variety, not one-size-fits-all classes.”

Niching Down to Capture Student Interest

Edkey’s individualized programs rely on the early identification of students’ interests, plus parent education throughout the process. 

Beginning in middle school, interest surveys and the state-mandated Educational Career Action Plan (ECAP) help students who are unsure about their college/career goals discover potential paths forward. Career education courses in 9th grade also introduce students to a variety of career clusters.

These early efforts help Edkey offer the classes and certification programs that align with students’ interests. When combined with data from the annual Arizona employment report , Edkey ensures students have the education they need to enter high-growth industries in their communities.

In the Phoenix metropolitan area, for example, Edkey schools partner with Joint Technical Education Programs to expand CTE offerings in tech, such as drone training. In smaller, rural areas, Edkey designs programs that allow students to graduate and immediately enter their local workforce as welders, mechanics, and other in-demand career fields.

And their approach is working. Enrollment in CTE classes at Edkey schools has increased year over year, and students are starting CTE earlier in 8th or 9th grade.

The Power of Seamless Integration and Partnerships

How does Edkey offer this kind of individualized programming at scale? Van Deinse credits their seamless integration and local partnerships.

Rather than treating CTE as electives to schedule around core courses, Edkey customizes students’ academic schedules to support their career goals. Edkey creates individualized pathways by aligning each students’ core math and science requirements with relevant CTE courses and certification programs.

Edkey also prioritizes partnerships to expand students’ vocational opportunities. “There are opportunities with local businesses for kids to get work experience while they go to school,” Van Deinse explained. “It’s super important for kids to get out there and participate, to get out from behind their computers and phones and bring their skills to life.”

In fields like auto repair and cosmetology, Edkey’s partnerships with local employers allow students to gain real-world experience and work toward professional certification. The employers also gain qualified future employees, making it a win/win for everyone involved.

Technology like Talon programs further integrates career education into high school by broadcasting college professors directly into Edkey classrooms. The flexible delivery eliminates the need for students to travel to college campuses and integrates CTE into their standard school day.

This technology has proven particularly effective in remote areas such as Sequoia Village School, which serves K–12 students in the small mountain community of Show Low, Arizona. Through Talon programs with the Northern Arizona Vocational Institute of Technology, students in Show Low are able to get vocational training right in their school.

Individualized Pathways Improve Retention

Creating individualized pathways is a proven retention strategy for Edkey. 

“Having these programs on our campuses really helps us retain students,” Van Deinse said. “We provide programs that kids are interested in, so they want to stay and finish their high school diploma.”

Van Deinse’s favorite success story is of a student with disabilities who was uninterested in school and on the verge of dropping out. But everything changed when the student enrolled in a digital media CTE course. 

Offering career education that aligned with the student’s interests and accommodated their needs re-engaged them in school. The student not only went on to finish high school, they graduated with an industry certification.

Building the Workforce of Tomorrow

Edkey’s unique approach to career and technical education has proven successful in not only engaging and retaining students, but also securing students’ career outcomes after graduation. By moving away from traditional models of CTE to embrace flexibility, Edkey is able to customize CTE to individual students’ goals and the workforce needs of their local communities.

Want to help your students discover potential career paths aligned to their interests? Request your free sample of the Career Exploration course from Savvas CTE . This digital course offers an in-depth look at 16 career clusters and helps students develop essential employability skills, like professionalism, teamwork, and time management.