Jocelyn Sharif has been interested in cooking since she was a young child watching the Food Network with her parents. “I was a shy child,” said Jocelyn, “and cooking was a way to express myself.”
Now Jocelyn has taken her interest in cooking and applied it to a career path. She is enrolled in Bloomington Area Career Center’s culinary arts program and will further her pursuit of culinary arts and hospitality management at Johnson & Wales University in Providence, R.I. “This program has really made me realize what exactly I want to do,” said Jocelyn. “It made me realize I could be a chef and be my own boss.”
High school students across the state are more prepared to attain postsecondary degrees and credentials because of career pathways programs like those in Bloomington. Career pathways and aligning the education system were among the topics at the 5th annual Network conference, which took place February 6-7, 2018, in Bloomington.
Bloomington Normal Advantage
A Welcome from McLean County
Keynote: The Equity Imperative: Without an equity lens, our capacity to scale is always limited
Alex Fralin, Chief of Schools, Madison Metropolitan School District
Approaching Employers about Apprenticeships and Internships
Mollie Dowling, OAI; Liz Rafferty, Genesys Works
Designing for Equity with Competency-Based Education
Dr. Patrick Hardy, Proviso Township High School
Pathways to and through Higher Education in Illinois
Dr. Al Bowman, Illinois Board of Higher Education
Postsecondary Choices at the Heart of the Community: How our community colleges help us scale options for all learners
Dr. Karen Hunter Anderson, Illinois Community College Board
How PACE-ing Ourselves Helps Us Scale What We Do
Dr. Travis McGuire, Hinckley-Big Rock CUSD #429
Creating a Corporate Culture that is Committed to Connecting Young People to Work
Steve Sosa, State Farm
Brewing New Possibilities for Young People
Jeffrey T. Wallace, LeadersUp
Building IT Pathways Across the Spectrum
Dan Weidner, School District 214; Krista Paul, School District 214
Parent-Teacher Home Visits
Dr. Landon Mascareñaz, Achieve
Building IT Pathways Across the Spectrum
Bill Skrzypczak McHenry County College
“Everyone Can Code” Initiative
Olga Gutierrez, Apple Education
