Back

The Career Planning System is made up of career activities at each grade level designed to help students focus on achieving academic success and meeting career goals. The Career Planning System helps students explore and plan for careers, whether they are seeking a 4-year degree, 2-year degree, certification or licensure, entrance into the military or direct entry into the workforce. Through business partner involvement, students understand the connection between what they learn in school and how it relates to current workplace demands.

K - 3rd Grades
Introduce Occupations
Students in K-3rd grades discover occupations through classroom activities, guest speakers, field trips, and career projects/fairs. Career activities answer the questions, “Why do people work?” and “What is the relationship between being a good student and being a good worker?”

4th - 5th Grades
Career Awareness
Students in the 4th and 5th grades develop career awareness through guest speakers. Careers are then highlighted through classroom activities, projects, career month activities, mentoring, and field trips. 

6th Grade
Learn About Self and Interests
Students in the 6th grade discover their interests and aptitudes through career assessments and exploration activities. Self-understanding and career exploration allow students to “match” their interests and aptitudes to careers. Guest speakers, field studies, and mentoring activities provide the real-world link to careers.

7th Grade
Introduce Career Clusters 
Students in the 7th grade are introduced to the five career clusters and the careers represented in each. Students explore interest areas through classroom learning style assessments, work preference assessments, guest speakers, field studies, and mentoring activities. 

8th Grade
Explore Interests by Cluster and Begin Career Planning
Students in the 8th grade match their interest areas to a career cluster and continue to explore interests by cluster through focused guest speaker, field trip, mentoring, and career month activities. Students record a career cluster selection on the VISA for use in high school course registration. 

9th Grade
Understand Self, Careers, and Making Decisions
Students in the 9th grade discover career likes and dislikes through exploration in the five career clusters. Through classroom guest speakers, field studies, and mentoring, students learn about careers in each broad cluster area. Self-understanding and career exploration provide the foundation from which students then develop career plans that “map out” high school courses and post-high school pathways. These 4, 6, or 8-year plans help students develop short and long-term career goals. 

10th Grade
Employability Skills
Students in the 10th grade research potential careers within a selected career cluster through business guest speakers, field studies, job shadowings, and participation in Career and Technical Education programs. Students are encouraged to develop interests by volunteering and participating in their favorite extracurricular activities. The Chamber of Commerce's Success at Work ($AWII) program utilizes business volunteers and their real world experiences to teach students work ethic and employability skills.

11th Grade
Skill Development and Training
Intensified career development at the 11th grade occurs within a chosen cluster through job shadowings, internships, on-the-job training, capstone projects, school-based enterprises, Career and Technical Education programs, and dual enrollment. 

12th Grade
Enhance Specialized Skills / Finalize Post-Secondary Plans
Students in the 12th grade enhance work-based skills through continued participation in internships,
on-the-job training, capstone projects, Career and Technical Education programs, and dual enrollment. Students finalize post-secondary, certificate, licensure, military, or workforce direct entry plans.