Chandler Unified outlines MITE class, expands internships with Elevate Ed and local partners

Patrick Brown, workforce development coordinator for Chandler Unified District #80, presented an update on the district’s workforce development work at the board’s April 23 study session and announced a new one-year course, MITE (Mentorships, Internships and Careers), planned for fall 2025.

Brown said the program’s first semester will teach career-readiness skills — resume and portfolio building, communication, income management and legal/ethical employment considerations — and the second semester will place students in supervised internships that must meet Arizona requirements for academic credit. "Per the requirements by the state of Arizona, they have to complete a hundred and 30 hours in order to earn academic credit," Brown said.

The MITE course will be offered at six district campuses for 11th- and 12th-grade students who are CTE completers (students who have completed two to three years in a career and technical education program). "The prerequisite is to be a completer, so at least, 2 years or 3 years depending on the program and either be a junior or a senior," a district representative confirmed during the session.

Why it matters: district leaders said MITE and related efforts aim to connect students to employer partners, reduce debt by helping students make informed postsecondary choices and increase local employer involvement in schools. Brown said the district has added about 19 business…