Career Awareness in WA Archives - Partnership for Learning

2025 Report: Employer Leadership in Early Talent Development

Washington’s economy has long been a national leader, driven by innovation, strong private sector growth, and a talented workforce. Last year, research projected more than 1.5 million job openings in our state through 2032, with 75% requiring postsecondary credentials. Washington students are eager to seize this opportunity: 86% aspire to complete a credential beyond high school.

However, without systemic change to scale up enrollment and credential production, Washington will experience a shortfall of nearly 600,000 credentialed workers needed by 2032.

To safeguard Washington’s economic vitality and expand opportunity for its residents, our state must build a stronger, more aligned talent pipeline that empowers and compels more students and adults to earn credentials necessary for living-wage jobs and long-term economic mobility. High-quality, career connected learning that intentionally integrates education with career and credential pathways is one critical solution for both employers and students.

Learn more about employers who are leading on this early talent development strategy in the 2025 Employer Leadership Report for Career Connect Washington.

Jefferson Healthcare Develops High-Demand Career Pathways

Jefferson Healthcare in Port Townsend is addressing rural healthcare workforce shortages by building a local talent pipeline through career connected learning. By partnering with local schools and colleges, they’ve developed a three-phase pathway that introduces students to healthcare careers as early as 8th grade and supports them through training, post-high school credentialing, and direct employment.

Skill Up For Our Future: Priority Occupation Cluster, Advanced Computing & Tech

REPORT: Washington’s advanced computing and technology sector is growing fast—already making up 21.8% of the state’s GDP, the highest in the country. Over the next decade, demand for software developers, computer support specialists, and systems analysts will surge, with 128,000 job openings expected by 2032. Despite this demand, there’s a critical skills gap: 84% of these jobs require a bachelor’s degree or higher, and the state is on track to produce 35,000 fewer qualified workers than needed.

New Report: 1.5 Million+ Job Openings by 2032 – Can Washington Meet the Challenge?

REPORT: Washington Roundtable, Partnership for Learning, and Kinetic West released a new report, Skill Up for Our Future, taking a deep dive into what Washington’s economy will look like through 2032 and where the opportunities and challenges lie for our workforce.

Fred Hutch LabLaunch: Hands-on learning for students + talent for life sciences sector

Spotlight: Fred Hutch’s LabLaunch program is redefining career preparation in the life sciences. This partnership between Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, Washington Alliance for Better Schools, and Shoreline Community College equips students with the skills needed for high-demand lab technician roles. The program combines hands-on lab experience with academic training, ensuring students are job-ready and offering them a guaranteed interview at Fred Hutch upon program completion.

Former STEM Signing Day honoree shares words of advice for HS students considering STEM

Partnership for Learning caught up with STEM Signing Day 2021 honoree Ishaan Ganguly and found out his latest updates.

‘You belong in science:’ Fred Hutch builds education pathways

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Yusuf remembers learning about robotics and computer science in middle school. “It clicked with me,” he says. “I was good at it, and I enjoyed it.”

During 10th grade at Sammamish High School, Yusuf’s AP chemistry teacher urged him to apply to the two-week Pathways Research Explorers Program at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. The program provides high school students from underrepresented communities an immersive, hands-on introduction to cancer biology, lab activities, and research careers.

“I was smiling the whole time. I was having fun,” Yusuf says. “I met a computational biologist while they were explaining what they did. I thought, that’s what I want to do.”

The Pathways Research Explorers Program is a launchpad for many students who go on to participate in Fred Hutch’s more intensive programs as they progress through their academic experiences. Students conduct scientific experiments related to cancer and talk to scientists in various positions, including people from groups systematically marginalized and excluded from research.

After learning about computational biology, Yusuf completed a yearlong internship with Fred Hutch in 11th grade. Through regular meetings with his mentor, a computational biologist, Yusuf learned about both coding and biology, and used machine learning to analyze COVID-19 data.

“It was a new experience that I don’t think I could have gotten anywhere else,” Yusuf says.

“You belong in science”

Through science education outreach, Fred Hutch – a member of the Washington Roundtable, of which Partnership for Learning is the education foundation – actively works to recruit, support, and retain high school and undergraduate students from communities underrepresented in scientific research. Students gain hands-on STEM experience while receiving career guidance and mentorship. Program participants become cancer researchers, computer engineers, and more. The programs also serve as a way for Fred Hutch to build a diverse pool of scientific researchers and engage communities across the state.

How HS principals and business leaders are coming together for WA students

The leadership demands of running a company and running a high school are more similar than one might expect. From personnel management and budgeting to healthy culture and handling crises, CEOs and high school principals share much in common.

This is one theme principals and business leaders have explored through the Chief Education Officer Network, a two-year program that provides professional and leadership development for a cohort of high school principals from across Washington state. A partnership between the Association of Washington School Principals (AWSP), Partnership for Learning, Washington Roundtable, and Challenge Seattle, the CEO Network brings principals together for a series of two-day workshops and offers access to online curriculum developed by AWSP. It also individually matches each of the principals with a senior executive from Washington’s private sector for one-on-one discussions and support.Read More

Increasing Postsecondary Enrollment: Chehalis SD Case Study

In the Chehalis School District, more than 9 of 10 students are graduating in four years from W. F. West High School, a higher rate than the state average. An increasing number are going on to pursue a post-high school credential. The “credential going” culture has developed out of the district’s commitment to increased dual-credit opportunities and rigorous coursework, an active partnership with Centralia College, strong supports for students who have been systemically underserved, particularly first-generation college students and those from low-income households, and active collaboration among staff. Learn more about what makes the district stand out in our new case study, which is part of our Credential is Essential series.

2020 Update: The Path to 70% Credential Attainment

REPORT: Right now, it’s estimated that just 41% of our high school students go on to earn a credential by age 26. To ensure students are prepared for jobs and opportunity, Washington must rapidly increase the rate at which students prepare for, pursue, and complete postsecondary credentials, according to a new report from the Washington Roundtable and Partnership for Learning.