The Department of Public Instruction in North Carolina plays a pivotal role in administering K-12 school systems, overseeing approximately 1.5 million students statewide, according to Kristie VanAuken, Special Advisor on Workforce Engagement. With education accounting for about 42% of the state budget, DPI is at the forefront of ensuring a robust public education system in the region.

From teacher licensure to funding allocation for school construction and transportation services, DPI manages a wide array of responsibilities that directly impact the state's educational landscape. Moreover, DPI extends its oversight to include charter schools and cooperative innovative high schools, offering diverse educational pathways for students.

One notable initiative is the Cooperative Innovative High School model, which allows students to earn both a high school diploma and an associate's degree concurrently, providing a head start in higher education or workforce readiness. With 132 of these high schools across the state, this model aligns with DPI's mission to foster advanced and accelerated learning opportunities for all students, with a focus on preparing them for future careers.

“This is for all students with a certain GPA, but we’ve set the bar at such a level where it really makes it accessible to the majority of students,” VanAuken said. “A lot of these models are aligned with a career so the student could graduate, for example, with their CNA, which is a health care credential, and be ready to go right straight into the workforce. We've also got some of those models with advanced manufacturing or biotechnology. There's some really cool ways for us to really accelerate and to allow the student to get on that career journey if that's what they want to do."

Superintendent Catherine Truitt made it one of her campaign promises and priorities to more easily connect K-12 students to workforce and careers by providing increased readiness and opportunities for enrollment in postsecondary institutions, military enlistment, or direct employment.

Through the Portrait of a Graduate initiative, stakeholders from various sectors as well as community members, teachers, parents, and support service providers collaborated to identify these essential life skills that go beyond traditional academics, ensuring students are well-equipped for success in both their careers and personal lives. The integration of durable skills, such as communication, critical thinking, and personal responsibility, into the state's educational framework helps to ensure students are adaptable and on the leading edge of rapidly-occurring changes in workforce needs.

Furthermore, the DPI is actively engaged in workforce development efforts, collaborating with employers, community colleges, and workforce development boards to align education with industry needs, ensuring students are readily able to acquire high-quality jobs that NC continues to invest in and attract. This includes initiatives to expand career pathways, provide work-based learning opportunities, and equip students with relevant credentials and certifications for a variety of applications.

“The west and northwest parts of North Carolina, particularly, have really embraced the Portrait and the development of these durable skills,” VanAuken said. “They’ve really doubled down on integrating these skills into strategic plans in the classroom. Performance tasks are project-based to ensure various student bodies can participate. This creates an intentional, deeper learning model that is task-oriented and competency-based alongside academic rigor.”

To help prepare teachers to instill these learning aspects into their curriculum, the NCDPI is creating online learning modules as part of a statewide resource library accessible to every teacher at no cost. There will also be additional regional training sessions to assist teachers in what they do naturally in the classroom, and eventually create accountability systems to ensure an educational foundation with the utmost positivity.

“We look at this as a mandate for us to align students’ learning to what employers say they need most,” VanAuken said. “These soft skills are what employers are saying entry-level talent is not bringing to the table.”

The Year of the Workforce in 2022 helped the DPI to double down with workforce partners including the NC Chamber of Commerce to engage employers, school districts, and students on four main pillars: economic development, student pathways, workplace learning, and workforce communication. Collaboration with the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina helped ensure these are part of NC’s education narrative.

Being passionate about student choice, VanAuken said the broader range of skills will allow students to be more qualified for whatever path they see is the best fit for them, in an intentional way and with strong career planning support. An educational plan including the ability to earn badges displaying durable skill development partnered with technical credentials demonstrating progression and mastery translates to workforce, military, or postsecondary qualification.

“Reframing perceptions of workforce options and educational choices for students and parents is imperative,” VanAuken said. “We are working to ensure students, counselors, and parents understand that there are a variety of opportunities that lead to a real, quality job. It can level-up opportunities for our students while maintaining alignment with sector partners and progressing workforce development for North Carolina.”