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Over the past year, the James Irvine Foundation’s Youth program has refined its approach to education reform in California’s high schools. The result is a more targeted focus on multiple pathways as our core strategy for improving the chances that all California’s young people succeed in life.

As is well known, California’s high schools are not working for large numbers of young people. Almost a third of ninth graders will drop out of high school before graduation. And of those who finish high school, most will lack the knowledge and skills needed to succeed in college and the workforce.

One of the most difficult challenges facing high schools today is how to engage more young people in the serious learning that will ensure their success in school and in work. The stakes for our youth — and for California’s ability to compete in a global economy — have never been greater

Multiple pathways offer a promising answer to this challenge, the Irvine Foundation believes. Multiple pathways programs engage youth in academically challenging work by demonstrating its relevance to the real world, and they prepare students for the full range of post-graduation options. Read more about multiple pathways.

Anne Stanton, Director of the Irvine Foundation’s Youth program, leads the Foundation’s effort to expand access to multiple pathways programs in California. She talked with Irvine Quarterly about the program’s recent refinement.

Irvine Quarterly: Can you explain how this increased focus on multiple pathways came about?

Stanton: It has been a gradual process. Since I came here at the end of 2003, we've continued to learn and refine our strategy. It’s all been with an eye toward greater progress toward our goal, which is to increase the number of low-income youth in California who graduate high school on time and receive a post-secondary credential.

Our strategy focuses on blending what are currently two separate paths in our education system. One is about academic rigor and preparing youth for college, and the other is about technical study and preparing them for career. While we believe all young people have to be held to the highest expectations, we also believe that rigor is not enough. We have to make education more relevant if we’re going to ignite the passions and aspirations of our young people.

Multiple pathways is based on the idea that you can take the deep interests that young people have, whether it's in arts and media, law and government or biomedicine and health, and create comprehensive pathways of study. These pathways accomplish both goals: they allow a young person to master the academic rigor needed to be ready for college, at the same time that they’re building their capacity for success in the real world.

That’s the primary strategy for the Youth program: what we call multiple pathways to college and career.

Irvine Quarterly: What does the Youth program see as the role for multiple pathways in California?

Stanton: We think multiple pathways programs should be available to youth across the state and across economic strata. In particular, we think they should be accessible to a majority of low-income youth, whose circumstances make them at risk for not finishing high school.

These programs exist today, and they are demonstrating the power of this approach, but they are few and far between. We envision a time when any high school district in the state is offering a variety of comprehensive multiple pathway programs that connect learning in the classroom with real-world applications outside of school.

These pathways, each set in the broad context of one of California’s 15 major industry sectors, are the way to engage our young people so that they persist through high school graduation and are prepared for success in life, whatever they choose to do.

Irvine Quarterly: Can you describe the key steps that the Irvine Foundation has taken so far to promote the multiple pathways approach in California?

Stanton: Early on, we recognized that there really was no anchor institution in California that could help articulate a vision for this kind of solution. So we launched ConnectEd: The California Center for College and Career, which serves as a hub for innovative practice, policy analysis and research for multiple pathways.

ConnectEd is making the case for what multiple pathways should be and how to go about creating these programs. They are working with schools and districts to demonstrate the success of this approach and build evidence. At the same time, they have a deep understanding of education policy — what the barriers are and what policy changes are needed if we're going to be able to expand multiple pathways.

It’s a big step for a foundation to launch a new organization. A lot of planning and thought went into that decision. Three years later, we can take pride in ConnectEd’s progress and success. It has proven to be innovative, and it has developed a strong reputation, based not only on their knowledge but also on their deep commitment to thinking through how this is going to play out for young people in California.

Irvine Quarterly: What have been its major accomplishments so far?

Stanton: First, I think we have had success in helping people understand the core principles of multiple pathways — that it is about preparing all young people for both college and career and not one or the other. And I think we have a good understanding of what comprehensive pathways look like when they’re done well. I think people are excited and energized by that.

Second, ConnectEd established a network of existing schools that demonstrate the potential of the multiple pathways model and help us better understand what tools and resources are needed. Through the ConnectEd Network of Schools, we're seeing the evidence of how this positively impacts student outcomes in terms of standardized tests, and that's really important.

Finally, I think there’s growing understanding and support among policy makers that this could be a way to transform high school education and the way we think about teaching and learning for young people. So, all of this is very encouraging.

Irvine Quarterly: What is the impact of multiple pathways on student outcomes?

Stanton: The evidence shows that young people in these programs are doing better in terms of test scores, attendance, progression from grade to grade and earning power after school. And among populations where there have been huge achievement gaps — Latino youth, African American youth — you see big differences in terms of their success.

The impact is striking if you visit some of the schools in the ConnectEd Network and talk to the young people in these programs. Many will tell you, “I had no idea why I was in school, I was on the verge of leaving, and this is what made me stay.” It’s very exciting to see.

(To view videos of students who are participating in multiple pathways programs, click here.)

Irvine Quarterly: What are the next steps in your strategy for expanding access to multiple pathways programs in California?

Stanton: The initial positive results in the ConnectEd Network of Schools have provided the first level of proof about how this can work. Now, based on that initial success and based on the support we have from policy makers, we’re ready to move from the school level to the district level, where there’s a deep interest in this throughout California.

Currently, a district may have one high school that has, say, a great health academy. Through the ConnectEd District Initiative, we’d like to see the districts build a system that has six pathways, each tied to a different industry, and that are robust, comprehensive sequences of study. That’s what’s needed if we are going to provide a range of options and reflect a range of interests among young people.

Obviously, this is a more complex challenge, and we don’t pretend to have it all figured out yet. But we’re excited about the thoughtful planning that’s going on in these districts.

Last year, 30 districts in California responded to our request for proposals, and every one of them is interested in moving forward. Ten received initial grants and are deeply engaged in planning how they would build systems of multiple pathways. Ultimately, we will support implementation of those plans based on their quality and readiness, and the vision that the leaders and the communities have about how they would implement this.

Irvine Quarterly: What kind of support does multiple pathways have among different stakeholder groups?

Stanton: It’s very much a surprising alliance of groups that have come together around this approach. There’s a broad range of stakeholders who don’t always see eye-to-eye but who are signing on in support of expanding multiple pathways as a way to transform high schools in California.

Through the Coalition for Multiple Pathways, we have the support of the public higher education systems, business and industry leaders, teachers associations, school districts and advocacy groups. It’s exciting to see this range of people come together. It really represents a broad-based coalition of members from all sectors. In the end, it will take the creativity and support of everyone if we're going to build this field and improve the outcomes for our young people.

Irvine Quarterly: How will the economic downturn and state budget cuts affect the ability of schools and districts to develop an expanded multiple pathways approach?

Stanton: We don’t know the full answer yet, but we are cognizant of the enormous challenges that school districts face. We need to be in partnership with the districts, mindful of what they’re able to take on and on what schedule.

But despite the economic challenges that these districts face, we have not seen any reduction in enthusiasm for going ahead with our District Initiative. That’s a very positive sign. These communities are really in the trenches, figuring out how to build systems of pathways, in large part because that's what they want to do.

The fact is that Irvine can afford to support this kind of innovation at a time when the districts don’t have the resources to build the capacity themselves. We can use this time to build the evidence and learn what it will take and what it will cost to bring multiple pathways to scale in a district. In essence, this will pave the way for a time when resources are available.

Irvine Quarterly: What is the Irvine Foundation doing to advance the multiple pathways approach beyond providing financial support?

Stanton: As a large private foundation, Irvine can use its standing to broker new partnerships and bring diverse people together in service of a broader goal. We can use our resources to help people to envision that broader goal and create the framework by which they work together to achieve that larger vision.

At the same time, we have a role to play in building the evidence for this approach, by supporting independent research and disseminating the results. We have a role in promoting the intellectual underpinnings of the multiple pathways approach and having researchers continue to think about it. And we’re doing that.

In the end, we have an obligation to bring all our resources — not just our financial resources — to bear on this problem. Sure, we could make a series of individual grants to a lot of different organizations and leave it at that. But that would be selling ourselves — and our young people — short.

Irvine Quarterly: What excites you about this work?

Stanton: At the core of our work, it’s really about the young people. That's why we call it a Youth program, not an education program.

For me, the most exciting thing is that this approach is focused on the need to make formal education engaging and relevant for young people who have not experienced a lot of success in it. We have to help young people see a future and let them choose it, and I don’t think we do a very good job of that in comprehensive high schools.

If we can transform the way a young person feels about going to school, about why it’s important, then we can open up new worlds of opportunity for them. That’s what multiple pathways does through contextualized learning. It has huge potential to improve the outcomes for young people in California.

For me that's why we’re doing what we’re doing. It is about the young people and changing the outcomes for the kids who have not experienced a lot of success.