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LEVinar recording: Fixing the Broken Marketplace: A Statewide Look at Washington's Education-to-Career Pathways

LEV partner organization Washington STEM is tackling a growing disconnect: too many students lack equitable pathways from high school to family-sustaining careers, deepening the state's K-shaped economic divide. Compounding this, there's no unified statewide scorecard or "north star" set of outcomes across the education-to-workforce continuum, making it hard to know what's working and where to focus.

With support from the Schultz Family Foundation and in partnership with HarrisX Research, Washington STEM has conducted a landscape analysis — including a deep dive into the King County marketplace — to identify where pathways are working, where they break down, who's being left behind, and what we can do to fix the "broken marketplace."

In this webinar, we share these findings and what's next as we build a statewide system that aligns partners, strengthens data use, and drives accountability for student outcomes.

Panelists:

• Noé Lima-Ponce, a freshman at the University of Washington double majoring in Multilingual Education and Public Service and Policy, and a Washington Policy Design Youth Leader
• Sogol Alamdar, a senior at the University of Washington studying International Affairs, Persian, and Middle Eastern cultures, and a Washington Policy Design Youth Leader
• Marie Groark, Managing Director of the Schultz Family Foundation
• Dritan Nesho, CEO of HarrisX
• Jenee Myers Twitchell, CEO of Washington STEM
• Ingrid Stegemoeller, Industry Engagement Director at Partnership for Learning

You can read the AI summary here. 

Guest Blog: For a student to learn, they have to feel safe first

Swarisha Korukonda, a junior at International School in the Bellevue School District, writes: "Students need to feel safe enough to raise a hand, safe enough to get an answer wrong, and safe enough to have a bad day without wondering what will be done to their body because of it. Take that away and school stops being a place kids grow in and turns into a place they just try to get through. Students with disabilities and behavioral needs have felt this most acutely, because for years the response to their hardest moments has too often been control, not support.

That’s the problem House Bill 1795 was written to address."

Upcoming LEVinar: Nothing About Us Without Us: Native Students on Education, Identity, and Belonging

Native students bring invaluable knowledge, insight, and leadership to conversations about the future of education. In this free webinar on Thursday, November 5 at 12:30 pm, Native American students from River Ridge High School in North Thurston Public Schools will share their experiences navigating school, culture, identity, and opportunity.

Together, they will discuss:

• What effective Native Studies programs look like
• How teachers can better support Native students beginning immediately
• Why Native-focused and culturally responsive specialty programs matter
• What school and district leaders should know about Native student experiences
• What policymakers across Washington state should hear directly from Native youth
• The questions adults should be asking students before making decisions on their behalf

This conversation is an opportunity to learn from Native students as experts in their own educational experiences and to explore how schools can become more responsive, inclusive, and empowering places for Native youth.