Nevada is one of the 10 states selected to participate in New Skills for Youth (NSFY), an initiative enhancing state efforts to increase the number of learners across the country who are prepared for success in both college and career. NSFY is a $75 million national initiative developed by JPMorgan Chase & Co. in collaboration with the Council of Chief State School Officers, Advance CTE and Education Strategy Group.
Since the start of the initiative in 2016, the Nevada NSFY team has planned and formalized processes to ensure college and career readiness and to increase local employer engagement. This effort has included aligning workforce development with “New Nevada” industry sectors; implementing the new college- and career-ready (CCR) high school diploma; and raising awareness of aligned career pathway initiatives among students, parents, educators, employers and communities.
In 2018, Nevada focused mainly on completing legislative policy work gained from education laws passed in the 2017 Nevada legislative session and implementing the following key strategies:
- Standing up a formalized, statewide work-based learning (WBL) system: In 2017, Senate Bill 66 (S.B. 66) formalized WBL in secondary education statewide. The Nevada team is engaging local WBL coordinators designated in each of Nevada’s 17 school districts to assess existing opportunities and develop more cohesive offerings and employer engagements across the state.
- Implementing the CCR high school diploma: In 2018, Nevada continued implementation of Assembly Bill 7 (A.B. 7), which directed the Nevada State Board of Education to prescribe requirements for a new CCR diploma in the state. In 2018, Nevada schools issued the first CCR diplomas and expect that approximately 6,500 Nevada graduates will earn the CCR diploma in 2019.
- Operationalizing career pathways alignment: The Nevada team has been working with WestEd on an analysis and inventory of all existing CTE programs and career pathways to identify gaps in alignment and opportunities for students. The Nevada team will use this analysis to align, coordinate and integrate education, employment and training programs to meet the needs of Nevadans.
To learn more about the New Skills for Youth states, visit the 2018 NSFY Snapshots series page.
