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Board approves updated District Career and Academic Plan; teachers recode courses as work'based learning
Summary
Pleasant Valley board approved the revised District Career and Academic Plan (DCAP). Staff described state changes to the definition of work'based learning, recoding 24 courses to meet the new definition and steps to increase employer partnerships and credential alignment.
The Pleasant Valley Comm School District board approved the district's updated District Career and Academic Plan (DCAP) after staff explained state guidance changes and how the district aligned courses and work'based learning reporting.
Under the May 2024 legislative guidance, the state clarified a consistent definition of work'based learning: sustained project'based learning in partnership with an employer, simulated work experiences aligned with industry recognized credentials, pre'apprenticeships, internships and apprenticeships. Staff said the change required districts to refine how they record and report work'based learning for accountability measures and that the state's post'secondary readiness indicator would now include work'based learning.
District staff met with Career and Technical Education (CTE) teachers to map existing courses to the updated definition and found 24 courses that could be coded as meeting the state's work'based learning requirements: seven as sustained project'based learning with an employer and 17 as simulated experiences aligned to industry credentials. Staff said several classroom activities already met the new definition once documented (for example, employer feedback on multi'week projects, simulated assessments aligned to industry credentials, and externally supervised job placements).
Staff also described plans to leverage the district's service learning and career counselor role to expand employer partnerships, job shadows and internship opportunities. The DCAP changes aim to improve reporting for state accountability and to increase alignment between CTE courses and industry recognized credentials.
Motion and vote: Director Wheeler moved and Director Kunkle seconded approval of the District Career and Academic Plan as presented; the motion passed. Staff said the plan will be submitted to the regional planning partnership and the district will use peer review feedback to refine the plan further.
Staff noted that while CTE concentrator metrics remain relevant for Perkins funding, the state's public accountability metric now emphasizes work'based learning participation and college'credit opportunities as measures of post'secondary readiness.
