Pathways to Work, a new workforce and employment initiative for high school students, launched June 12 at Downtown Campus. The program's purpose is to prepare and place these students in entry-level high-demand occupations in Construction/Trades, Culinary Arts and Global Logistics industries. 

Using existing outreach programs at Andrew Jackson, William M. Raines and A. Philip Randolph high schools, Pathways to Work is serving approximately 60 Duval County high school juniors and seniors with high-economic need, who are generally at risk for graduation and consequently, have limited opportunity to attain “living wage” employment.

The Pathways to Work learn-and-earn training model will help students transform their lives by supporting them as they earn a postsecondary workforce certificate to access immediate employment upon completion and acquire educational credentials along a trajectory toward an associate or bachelor’s degree. 

The first year of this pilot program will be funded by an investment from a private donor.

Pathways to Work will be formally introduced to the community on June 15 at a press conference at the Advanced Technology Center at 10:30 a.m.