Career Development Opportunities in Washington, DC Public Schools

• In Event: Career Development Opportunities Today and Tomorrow: Toward Equity and Opportunity

Abstract

Attaining a stable, family-sustaining, fulfilling career requires individuals to have technical skills, professional competencies, education or certifications, social and emotional aptitudes, and knowledge of and access to pathways to enter jobs of their choice. In Washington, DC, middle and high school students have various career development opportunities (CDOs) to help them learn about potential careers and gain prerequisite knowledge and skills.

A CDO might generate or sustain student understanding and interest in a specific career or career field; provide instruction in academic, technical, and employability skills; build general or specific knowledge about careers and career development; or provide experiences required to enter and succeed in various careers. Examples of CDOs range from structured multicourse programs of study at school-based career academies, elective career and technical education coursework, internships, apprenticeships, and informal or less-structured programming, such as career counseling, job fairs, and career and technical student organizations.

This paper presents the results of a landscape analysis of career development opportunities available to DCPS middle and high school students. The report describes the components of each CDO, its location(s), participants, cost and management structure, and goals. The study also compiles available data on the numbers and characteristics of students who participate in each program, as well as any program outcomes, and explores how opportunities and access to them are distributed throughout the city.

The study is a mixed-methods exploratory opportunity analysis. Qualitative methods include interviews with principals, program leaders, and program staff and a questionnaire to gather structured information on the implementation of programs. Quantitative methods will include use of administrative data to conduct regression-based analyses. We also describe the strategy we used to significantly reduce the response burden on educators and improve the accuracy of their responses to our survey questionnaire.

Preliminary results indicate a high degree of variation in not just programmatic formats and goals, but also in the availability and accessibility of CDOs. The participants of some CDOs are largely reflective of the demographics and characteristics of the district and school as a whole, while others (sometimes deliberately, sometimes unintentionally) enroll more/fewer students who are economically disadvantaged, academically advanced, and/or in receipt of special education services. Some CDOs also have significant barriers to entry or participation; sometimes this is by design, with the CDO targeting select students, but sometimes unintentional.

Authors

• Dara Zeehandelaar Shaw, Urban Institute

• Chelsea Coffin, D.C. Policy Center

• Rebecca Anne Johnson, New York City Department of Education