Students and staff say JAG program expands career pathways at Chippewa Valley High School

Principal Jamie Gansky told the board she leads Chippewa Valley High School and its alternative programs and highlighted the Jobs for America's Graduates (JAG) program as a key pathway for students who need nontraditional routes to graduation. She described three programs at the school (a credit-based PASS pathway, a GAAP/GTO2 partnership with CVTC that leads to GED testing and diploma parity, and a transition program for multiple pathways) and said the JAG curriculum aims to support students through the first year after graduation.

Sarah, the JAG coordinator, summarized the program's goals and metrics, saying it teams with community partners and measures success by whether students are working, in school, in combined work-and-school plans, or in active military service one year after graduation. "We serve about 25 to 35 students in each of our buildings in an alternative model," she said, adding that JAG offers 87 competencies—from basic life skills to job-readiness—and that the program receives support through the Department of Children and Families and state resources.

Two students who participate in JAG made the program's case in first-person testimony. "I feel better prepared for my future because of the time I spent with JAG and my career specialist," said Isaiah Kenny, a senior at Chippewa Valley High School. He told the board JAG gave him travel and conference opportunities, CPR and first-aid certification paid for by the program, and career-exploration experiences that helped him consider entrepreneurship and college credit pathways.

Braden Green, a junior, said JAG connected him with industry tours and youth apprenticeship options that solidified his interest in a career as an electrician: "Because of JAG, I now have the opportunity to become an electrician after I graduate from high school with college credits." Both students thanked the board for supporting programs that reach students who otherwise might disengage from school.

Gansky and Sarah said additional program data are available on request, including local outcome measures presented to state leaders at past budget hearings. The board did not take action on the showcase; the presentation concluded with several board members and the student representatives praising the students' presentations and the partnership with local employers and CVTC.