The Pathways Resource Center (PRC) focuses on enhancing and strengthening pathways to college and career success for all students by providing resources, research, and support to P-20 education partners. In conjunction with Race to the Top partners across the state of Illinois, PRC provides resource materials and coaching support for school districts implementing programs of study in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. PRC’s work builds on and contributes to the growing body of work OCCRL has developed around career pathways and programs of study. Supports provided by PRC include webinars, templates, toolkits, and conferences, in which PRC personnel disseminate current research and resources and prompt high quality programs of study and equitable outcomes for students.

Mission and Goals

The mission of the PRC is to provide resources and supports to secondary and postsecondary institutions, employers, communities, and other partners as they engage in successful and sustainable pathways for students from secondary, to postsecondary, to careers.  The PRC serves as a centralized resource for their diverse partners and seeks to:

  • improve equitable outcomes for all students throughout the P-20 education system;
  • provide supports to schools, school districts, postsecondary institutions, and their other partners in the form of webinars, templates, toolkits, and conferences focused on improving college and career pathways for all students; and
  • disseminate current research and resources on topics such as the Illinois Pathways Initiative, programs of study, Pathways to Results, college and career readiness, adult career pathways, and transfer and transition practices.

The goals of the Pathways Resource Center are as follows:

  • to serve as a resource in communicating and supporting the importance of pathways as an integral piece of P-20 education;
  • to develop the capacity of P-20 education partners to select, design, and implement pathways and programs of study to promote students’ college and career success;
  • to provide a resource bank of evidence-based materials, which can be accessed by P-20 education partners, which supports the development and implementation of pathways for all students; and
  • to support the sustainability of the pathways research and programming, through efforts to identify external funding and partnership opportunities for P-20 education partners.
PRC Funding
The Pathways Resource Center is funded by Illinois State Board of Education, through the Illinois Race to the Top initiative.

Spotlight Briefs

PRC's Spotlight brief series highlight promising practices in P-20 pathways and programs of study.


Pathways Spotlight Briefs:

Career and Technical Education for Postsecondary Readiness

May 29, 2019, 11:36 by System
Download (pdf) 1709 KB

PRC Voices and Viewpoints

PRC Publications

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