Kansas youth groups seek $320,000 for VR career-exploration pilot targeting grades 6–8

Joyce Glasscock, executive director of the Kansas Alliance of Boys and Girls Clubs, told a legislative committee that a coalition of youth-development groups is seeking $320,000 in state funds for FY2026 to pilot a virtual-reality career-exploration program for students in grades 6 through 8.

The coalition — which includes Jobs for America’s Graduates (JAG K), the YMCA affiliate WISE, 4‑H and the FFA — said the pilot would buy headsets and software licenses, train staff, and support outcome tracking. "We propose a match of nonstate or private funding of $1 to every $2 of state funding," Glasscock said, describing the coalition’s plan to pair public dollars with private contributions.

Nut graf: Proponents say the pilot aims to reach middle-school students who lack consistent access to career-exploration opportunities, and to connect those students with high-demand fields, including agriculture, food and natural resources, health care, advanced manufacturing and building trades. Supporters told the committee the program would both boost student awareness and help fill workforce pipelines important to Kansas communities.

Glasscock said the coalition collectively serves nearly 11,000 middle-school students across the state in after-school, summer and some school-day programs and that a two-year pilot would focus on a subset of those youths. She suggested a pilot enrollment target equal to about 5–10% of the coalition’s middle-school population — roughly 550 to 1,100 students — to allow pre- and post-testing on career interest and skill confidence.

The group asked for $320,000 for the first year (FY2026); committee members were told that the House Appropriations Committee approved one year of funding there. Glasscock said the requested state funds would come