By Katarina Webb
The Career+™ team is proud to celebrate a major milestone this year: 224 students across Indiana completed the Career+™ Locally Created Pathway (LCP) as part of the graduating Class of 2026.
With this year’s graduates, the Career+™ Locally Created Pathway has now supported a total of 434 graduates across the first three graduating classes to successfully complete the pathway and earn their diploma through a personalized, career-connected experience.
What began as a new opportunity for students has continued to grow into a meaningful pathway that helps students connect their education to real-world goals, career interests, and postsecondary plans.
What is the Locally Created Pathway?
The Locally Created Pathway was created to provide students with a flexible graduation option centered around career readiness and real-world learning experiences. Rather than focusing solely on traditional academic measures, the pathway allows students to demonstrate readiness through experiences that connect directly to life after high school.
Students completing the pathway engage in a variety of career-focused activities and experiences designed to help them build employability skills, explore career interests, and gain hands-on exposure to the workforce.
Throughout the pathway, students:
- Complete career-focused microcredentials
- Participate in career exploration and reflection activities
- Attend career chats and employer tours
- Build resumes and professional portfolios
- Practice interview skills through mock or real job interviews
- Participate in work-based learning experiences
- Develop postsecondary plans connected to their goals
- Gain exposure to local employers, industries, and career opportunities
Each requirement is designed to move students beyond simply asking “What do I want to do?” and toward understanding “How do I get there?”
The Growth of the Pathway
Over the past three graduating classes, schools across Indiana have continued to expand their use of the Locally Created Pathway as a way to support students with meaningful career preparation opportunities.
The growth to 434 graduates reflects more than just participation numbers. It represents:
- Hundreds of students gaining workplace exposure before graduation
- Increased collaboration between schools and employers
- Expanded access to career-connected learning opportunities
- Students building confidence in professional settings
- Schools creating intentional systems to support postsecondary readiness
For many students, the pathway has helped connect the dots between school and future goals in a way that feels practical, relevant, and personalized.
Supporting Graduation Seals and Postsecondary Readiness
In addition to helping students complete graduation requirements, the pathway is also creating opportunities for students to work toward Indiana’s Graduation Pathway Seals.
One of the strongest examples of this connection is through work-based learning experiences.
The Career+™ Locally Created Pathway currently requires students to complete 75 hours of work-based learning. However, students who increase those experiences to 150 hours may also qualify for additional graduation distinctions and seals tied to employability and career readiness requirements.
For the Class of 2026 alone, approximately 120 students who completed the Locally Created Pathway could potentially have earned the Employment Honors Seal if they had increased their work-based learning participation from 75 hours to 150 hours.
This highlights an exciting opportunity for schools moving forward:
- Students are already completing many of the required components
- Schools are already building systems for career-connected learning
- Employers are already engaged with students
- Many students are already more than halfway to key work-based learning benchmarks
With intentional planning and continued employer partnerships, schools may be able to help significantly more students earn both pathway completions and graduation seals simultaneously.
Real Experiences, Real Impact
One of the most impactful aspects of the pathway is the emphasis on authentic experiences.
Students participating in the pathway have:
- Interviewed with real employers
- Completed workplace training plans
- Logged work-based learning hours
- Connected with professionals in industries ranging from healthcare and manufacturing to education, agriculture, technology, construction, and public service
These opportunities help students build confidence while developing skills that employers consistently identify as essential, including communication, professionalism, time management, problem-solving, teamwork, and adaptability.
For many students, these experiences become defining moments during high school. Some students discover career interests they had never previously considered, while others gain clarity and confidence in career paths they already planned to pursue.
A Collaborative Effort
The success of the Locally Created Pathway would not be possible without the incredible collaboration between schools, families, employers, and community partners.
School counselors, administrators, teachers, career coaches, and work-based learning coordinators have invested countless hours supporting students through the process. Employers across Indiana have also played a critical role by opening their doors to students, participating in career events, hosting tours, conducting interviews, and mentoring future workforce talent.
This collaboration is what makes the pathway meaningful. Students are not completing requirements in isolation. They are actively engaging with their communities and future opportunities.
Looking Ahead
As the Career+™ Locally Created Pathway continues to grow, so does the opportunity to help more students graduate with confidence, direction, and real-world experience.
The Career+™ team remains committed to expanding access to career-connected learning experiences and supporting schools as they prepare students for success after graduation.
To the 224 graduates in the Class of 2026: congratulations on this accomplishment and on all the work it took to get here. Your dedication, growth, and willingness to step into new experiences has set a strong foundation for your future.
And to all 434 graduates who have completed the Career+™ Locally Created Pathway over the past three graduating classes: thank you for helping shape what this pathway can become for future students across Indiana.
Bio
Katarina Webb, School Success Manager at Career+ Pathways™! Starting as a Career Advisor through a partnership with Ivy Tech, Katarina now leads a team supporting schools across the GLC region. Outside of work, she enjoys traveling, the creative arts and spending time with her family and fur babies.
