Work-based learning brings futures into focus.

Take a look at a few existing initiatives to see how.

Beyond-the-classroom learning opportunities help students and job seekers prepare for the working world in a number of ways.

They can open learners’ eyes to possibilities they may have never imagined, give them a better feel for what a specific path would be like or immerse them in the daily workings of a company or role. High-quality programs across the state are helping students to make work-based learning the new norm for all North Carolinians. Here are just a few of their stories:

Academy of Engineering & Advanced Manufacturing (Apex HS)

Activity: Worksite tours | Job shadowing | Career fairs | Internship
Category: Awareness
Geographic County: Wake
Target Audience: High School
Career Cluster/Skills: Manufacturing

Description

The Academy of Engineering & Advanced Manufacturing is a small learning community within Apex Friendship High School. Designed as a four-year high school program, the Academy has an open and equitable student recruitment process that results in a student body that reflects the demographics of the community. However, students must be assigned to Apex Friendship as their base school in order to apply. Once accepted into the program, students remain together throughout their high school years with a core group of specially trained teachers. The Academy model provides an environment for these teachers to develop interdisciplinary activities that makes learning relevant and captures the interest of students. Through real-world, hands-on experiences, the Academy exposes students to careers within STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics).

Alamance Youth Leadership Academy

Activity: Mentoring
Category: Exploration
Geographic County: Alamance
Target Audience: Grades 7–8
Career Cluster/Skills: Education & Training

Description

The Alamance Youth Leadership Academy (AYLA) is a two-year program committed to building strong foundations for future leaders. Founding members identified middle school as a time of critical personal development and an opportunity to engage area seventh and eighth graders in leadership and service.

ApprenticeshipNC

Activity: Apprenticeship
Category: Experience
Geographic County: Statewide
Target Audience: High School | College students
Career Cluster/Skills: Manufacturing | Architecture & Construction | Health Science | STEM | Transportation, Distribution & Logistics

Description

ApprenticeshipNC helps workers learn specialized skills needed in today’s economy. ApprenticeshipNC is an employer-driven model that combines on-the-job learning with related classroom instruction. ApprenticeshipNC allows businesses to create flexible and effective training and hiring solutions that work for their industry. Apprentices learn practical skills while earning a nationally recognized industry credential.

Biogen Community Labs

Activity: Worksite tours | Guest speakers | Hands-on experience
Category: Awareness
Geographic County: Durham
Target Audience: Grades 9–12
Career Cluster/Skills: STEM

Description

Biogen’s Community Lab is a state-of-the-art laboratory classroom where local middle and high school students engage in hands-on biotechnology experiments and interact with scientists and other biotech professionals. It offers free daylong, interactive science activities, rigorous summer programs, and teacher professional development.

Biogen Foundation Spark Video Contest

Activity: Career competition
Category: Exploration
Geographic County: Statewide
Target Audience: Middle School | High School
Career Cluster/Skills: STEM

Description

We are inviting middle and high school students in Massachusetts and North Carolina to create 30-second to 3-minute videos on the topic of biotechnology in your life. Please make sure the video is accurate and creative and have your teachers submit the video here (two submissions per school), because each school that submits an eligible video will win $500 and you could win a GoPro video camera!

Boundless Fellowship-Fidelity

Activity: Job shadowing | Career discovery
Category: Awareness
Geographic County: Wake
Target Audience: High School | Undergraduate students
Career Cluster/Skills: Entrepreneurship

Description

Boundless is a discovery program for high school and undergraduate women getting ready to take the world by storm. Through events, education, and digital and social engagement, you will identify your strengths, discover your passions, set your path, and find your purpose.

BRITE Futures

Activity: Worksite tours | Internship
Category: Experience
Geographic County: Durham
Target Audience: High School
Career Cluster/Skills: STEM

Description

BRITE Futures recognizes the vital role of science education to our way of life, our health, and our economy. The goal is to help bridge the gap between current research and public awareness. BRITE Futures is dedicated to collaborating with K–12 teachers and administrators to foster North Carolina students’ understanding of biotechnology concepts and skills. Our mission is to share research and resources with the university community, public education and other partners, in ways that contribute to BRITE’s leadership in K–12 biotechnology education.

Career Accelerator Program

Activity: Apprenticeship
Category: Experience
Geographic County: Alamance
Target Audience: Grades 11–12
Career Cluster/Skills: Manufacturing

Description

The local businesses have developed Alamance CAP (Career Accelerator Program), a 4-year apprenticeship opportunity for students that will offer a paid summer internship, combined with on-the-job training and a 2-year associates degree in Mechatronics Engineering Technology from Alamance Community College, all paid for by the local company. In addition, at the end of the 4-year apprenticeship program, participating students will be offered a guaranteed job upon completion of the program.

Center for Energy Research and Technology CERT

Activity: Teacher Externship
Category: Exploration
Geographic County: Guilford
Target Audience: Educators
Career Cluster/Skills: STEM

Description

C.E.R.T.’s main focus is on energy awareness and research through educational outreach activities.

Cisco’s Networking Academy

Activity: Online training
Category: Awareness
Geographic County: Worldwide
Target Audience: High School
Career Cluster/Skills: Business Management & Administration

Description

NetAcad programs are designed with lots of hands-on activities and that is one thing which attracts students to the program. Cisco Networking Academy is a global platform which can be used to inspire students and instructors to make their future brighter.

Foothills Industries

Activity: OJT | Full-time employment
Category: Experience
Geographic County: McDowell
Target Audience: Special population focus
Career Cluster/Skills: Manufacturing

Description

The mission of Foothills Industries is to provide vocational and life-skills training and employment for persons with disabilities in order to maximize independence and employment while providing quality products at competitive costs and on-time delivery to our customers.

Free Enterprise Leadership

Activity: Leadership challenge
Category: Exploration
Geographic County: Statewide
Target Audience: Grades 10–12
Career Cluster/Skills: Government & Public Administration

Description

The goal of FELC is to educate students about entrepreneurship, the differences between capitalism and socialism, free market economics, personal responsibility, principled leadership and corporate/personal philanthropy. Activities and lessons are designed for students to create meaningful practical application.

GEDb

Activity: Micro-Credentialing
Category: Exploration
Geographic County: Statewide
Target Audience: Teachers within the NC school system
Career Cluster/Skills: Education & Training

Description

In September 2011, the North Carolina State Board of Education formed a Task Force on Global Education to assess the state's effort to produce globally competitive graduates ready to live, work and contribute in an interconnected world. Based on its findings, the Task Force made a number of recommendations that would help to ensure that public school students are well prepared

Go Global NC

Activity: Teacher externship abroad
Category: Experience
Geographic County: Statewide
Target Audience: Teachers within the NC school system
Career Cluster/Skills: Partnerships with universities abroad

Description

In a world increasingly characterized by globalization, interconnectedness, and interdependence, it is essential young people have the knowledge, skills and attitudes necessary to live and work in a global society. In order to prepare students for these challenges, they must have teachers who understand global processes and can employ a global perspective in the classroom. Since 1991, Go Global NC has provided experiential learning opportunities to help educators bring the world to North Carolina classrooms. Teachers from all grade levels and all subject areas use these new global experiences to ignite an interest in global competition and cooperation among their students.

Golden LEAF Scholars Leadership Program

Activity: Internship
Category: Experience
Geographic County: Statewide
Target Audience: High School
Career Cluster/Skills: Government & Public Administration

Description

Golden LEAF has been a steady hand providing resources to increase the economic opportunity for the state’s rural and economically distressed communities through a variety of grants-making including building human infrastructure through workforce training and scholarships. Since its inception, the Golden LEAF Foundation has awarded over $41 million to help more than 19,200 students from rural North Carolina attend the state’s colleges and universities.

Google CS First

Activity: Online interactive activities
Category: Awareness
Geographic County: Worldwide
Target Audience: Grades 4–8
Career Cluster/Skills: Information Technology

Description

CS First is a free web-based program that exposes students to computer science through video tutorials and modules that students participate in as after-school, in-school and summer programs. Designed for grades 4–8, the clubs teach students about computer science and coding in a hands-on, learning-by-doing way.

Haywood Vocational Opportunities

Activity: OJT | Full-time employment
Category: Experience
Geographic County: Waynesville
Target Audience: Adults with disabilities
Career Cluster/Skills: Manufacturing

Description

HVO supplies world class quality medical products while providing the local community with vocational training and employment opportunities to adults with disadvantages and disabilities. HVO is a social enterprise business located in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains of Western North Carolina.

IGNITE my Future

Activity: Science fair
Category: Exploration
Geographic County: Statewide
Target Audience: Middle School
Career Cluster/Skills: Information Technology

Description

There are lots of resources available to help students grow as computational thinkers— and many are free! Some of these platforms begin at basic levels and can be utilized by beginners as young as preschool age, while still others provide interactive experiences that utilize diverse computational thinking strategies.

Industrial Opportunities, Inc.

Activity: OJT | Full-time employment
Category: Experience
Geographic County: Andrews
Target Audience: Adults with disabilities
Career Cluster/Skills: Manufacturing

Description

IOI provides actual work for people with disabilities to learn pre-vocational and work skills. Referrals for services are through North Carolina Department of Vocational Rehabilitation (NCDVR) and Vaya Health, MCO.

Junior Leadership Durham

Activity: Service Learning
Category: Exploration
Geographic County: Durham
Target Audience: 10th grade students
Career Cluster/Skills: Government & Public Administration

Description

Junior Leadership Durham is a non-profit community-wide program designed to shape the future of high school students by promoting teamwork, developing leadership skills and fostering self-confidence and personal growth. Through active participation, students interact with business, community and government leaders to gain an in-depth knowledge of Durham and to encourage them to explore ways in which they can contribute to their community.

Mayor's Youth Employment Program

Activity: Job shadowing | Internship
Category: Experience
Geographic County: Charlotte-Mecklenburg
Target Audience: High School
Career Cluster/Skills: Government & Public Administration

Description

MYEP seeks to build partnerships with host employers in the private, public, and non-profit sectors of Charlotte’s economy who are able to provide one-of-a-kind career experiences for MYEP participants. Businesses provide career experiences that help youth develop career goals, stay in school, achieve academically, and enhance social skills that enable them to succeed in life. Students connect to the world of work which enables businesses and communities to know the needs and successes of the students and schools.

Medical Bridge Camp

Activity: Job shadowing
Category: Awareness
Geographic County: Alamance
Target Audience: Minority male middle school students
Career Cluster/Skills: Health Science

Description

Alamance Community College, in partnership with the Alamance-Burlington School System, is addressing the gross under-representation of minority men in medical fields with a county-wide initiative intended to increase application and matriculation rates for those pursuing medical degrees. For three weeks in July 2017, 40 minority male middle school students are participating in the College’s first-ever Medical Bridge Summer Camp–a 3-week intensive immersion into math, science and writing programs that lays the groundwork for success in medical and STEM careers. Additionally, those students have been interacting with mentors and role models during field trips to Duke University Medical Center, UNC Medical School, N.C. Central University’s biomedical/biotechnology research institute, the Greensboro Science Center and N.C. Bionetwork. The goal is to develop a holistic approach that addresses the belief gap, the interest gap, the knowledge gap and the resources gap that are barriers to entry for prospective minority male participants.

NAF Be Future Ready Internships

Description

NAF Future Ready Labs is an innovative solution to closing the internship gap. Providing a strategic structure to successfully scale paid internship experiences, NAF Future Ready Labs make it easy for companies to play an active and flexible role in building the talent pipeline. NAF Future Ready Labs help support the goal of reaching 100% internships and creating access to opportunities for ALL future leaders.

NC Cybersecurity Apprenticeship

Activity: Apprenticeship
Category: Experience
Geographic County: Statewide
Target Audience: Special population focus
Career Cluster/Skills: Information Technology

Description

The two-year pilot program is in its second year. Five apprentices work eight-hour days Monday through Thursday, guided by mentors in their work. On Friday, the apprentices meet for training at ISG in Raleigh. They receive regular salary and benefits, and by the time they graduate from the program in October, they will be eligible to take the examination for and obtain a CISSP – Certified Information System Security Professional Associate certification.

NC Highway Patrol Internship Program

Activity: Internship
Category: Experience
Geographic County: Statewide
Target Audience: Special population focus
Career Cluster/Skills: Law, Public Safety, Corrections & Security

Description

The Highway Patrol Internship Program is designed to provide real life unpaid work experiences beneficial to both the student and the Patrol. Students complete various tasks and projects which benefit the Patrol while the student receives college credit for completing the internship. Selected interns will have the opportunity to work on challenging assignments while learning about the Highway Patrol; will acquire a realistic perspective of the working world; and will be placed with a supervisor to facilitate professional growth.

NC School of Science and Math Mentorship

Activity: Mentorship | Science fair
Category: Exploration
Geographic County: Durham
Target Audience: High School
Career Cluster/Skills: STEM

Description

Engage rising seniors from North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics in research and internship opportunities—and enjoy the energy and curiosity that students bring to the work environment. NCSSM students are interested in a range of real-world experiences from academic settings to businesses and non-profits, in STEM fields as well as social sciences, arts, and humanities.

NC State Shelton Challenge Camp

Activity: Service Learning
Category: Exploration
Geographic County: Wake
Target Audience: Rising 9th–12th grade students
Career Cluster/Skills: Education & Training

Description

The First-Year Shelton Challenge is a six-day summer experience for rising freshmen, sophomores, juniors, and seniors in high school. Shelton’s five cornerstones of values-based leadership—honesty, integrity, compassion, diversity and social responsibility—are the foundations of the camp. The core curriculum focuses on personal leadership assessment and interpersonal dynamics, role of values and ethics in leadership, leadership traits and approaches, team-building and empowering others, social responsibility, public speaking, and goal setting.

North Carolina Triangle Apprenticeship Program

Activity: Apprenticeship
Category: Experience
Geographic County: Statewide
Target Audience: High School
Career Cluster/Skills: Manufacturing

Description

NCTAP is an apprenticeship program designed to develop experts needed in the modern workforce. The program, based in North Carolina’s Triangle area, focuses on integrated basic training which develops technical, methodological, and social skills. The core training program utilizes a hands-on approach to develop skills across a wide range of disciplines.

NCWorks NextGen

Activity: Internships | OJT
Category: Experience
Geographic County: Wake
Target Audience: Ages 16–24
Career Cluster/Skills: Job readiness

Description

The NCWorks NextGen Program is one of the Programs featured at NCWorks Career Centers in Guilford County, and will replace the INSPIRE Young Adult Workforce Preparation Program. Young adults who want to attend college, earn a credential, or just want a rewarding career and a better life for themselves, can participate in the Program. With services like: Tutoring/study skills, comprehensive career counseling, mentoring, career exploration, entrepreneurship/business skills, job training, paid or unpaid internships and more, young adults are sure to succeed!

Northeast Agricultural Expo

Description

The Northeast Ag Expo Team typically hosts 2 field days each year, the Small Grain Field Day in late February/early March, and our hallmark annual event, the Northeast Ag Expo Field Day held each summer on the last Thursday in July. The field day location rotates between the 6 counties, and the commodity/commodities highlighted each year are those important to the host county. Both field days are conducted annually through the joint efforts of producers, agribusinesses, North Carolina State University, commodity groups, and the 6-county North Carolina Cooperative Extension Centers. Since the counties involved are located in the Tidewater Region of North Carolina, the natural resources and commodities produced vary tremendously. Attendees get to view various research plots as well as benefit from presentations by Extension personnel and company representatives.

Project Enable

Activity: Internship | Fellowship
Category: Experience
Geographic County: Statewide
Target Audience: Special population focus
Career Cluster/Skills: Health Science

Description

ENABLE stands for Extensible Network-Accessible Biomedical & Health Informatics Lifelong learning Environment. ENABLE, an extension of the Carolina Health Informatics Program (CHIP), was established to encourage students and professionals from diverse backgrounds to explore careers or advanced training in Biomedical and Health Informatics (BMHI). The program has two components: ENABLE HiDAV Summer Program and Online Master's program.

Project Lift Off/ Amazing Shake

Activity: Mentoring & academic coaching
Category: Exploration
Geographic County: Raleigh
Target Audience: Selected 5th–8th grade students
Career Cluster/Skills: Education & Training

Description

During the weekend of February 9th–11th, the Ron Clark Academy (RCA) held its first National Amazing Shake Competition, a contest created to educate students about the nuances of professional and social interaction with an emphasis on displaying manners, discipline and respect. As a result, students are given the skills needed to present themselves exceptionally well for opportunities today and in the future. The Ron Clark Academy is a private, non-profit middle school and educator training program in Southeast Atlanta that promotes innovation and inspires its students and educators through energetic teaching balanced by a strict code of discipline. The Academy currently relies on outside funding to provide scholarships to students from varying academic and financial backgrounds. For more information, please visit ronclarkacademy.com.

Project Search

Activity: Internship
Category: Experience
Geographic County: Statewide
Target Audience: Special population focus
Career Cluster/Skills: Government & Public Administration

Description

Project SEARCH is a high school or young adult transition initiative which is a business-led, one-year, school-to-work program that combines classroom instruction, career exploration, and relevant job-skills training through strategically designed internships for students with intellectual and other developmental disabilities (I/DD).

Raleigh Digital Connectors Program

Activity: Service Learning
Category: Exploration
Geographic County: Wake
Target Audience: High School | Adult population (14–21)
Career Cluster/Skills: Information Technology

Description

The Digital Inclusion Team offers a variety of classes to enhance your technology skills. We offer basic computer training for adults, as well as more specific technology classes to meet the demands of today’s global economy.

Raleigh Summer Youth Employment Program (RSYEP)

Activity: Summer Long Program | Job Program
Category: Experience
Geographic County: Raleigh city limits
Target Audience: 15–18 year-old High School students
Career Cluster/Skills: Private sector jobs

Description

The Raleigh Summer Youth Employment Program helps teens between the ages of 15 and 18 to develop their skills and prepare for future employment by spending the summer working for the City of Raleigh.

reacHIRE

Activity: Returnship
Category: Exploration
Geographic County: Statewide
Career Cluster/Skills: Marketing | Finance | Information Technology | Business Management & Administration

Description

We arm returning professionals with the skills, knowledge and support they need to successfully re-enter the workforce. Our partners choose reacHIRE because of our vision and industry-leading results. But we are driven by the human element because we know that every mother, sister, and daughter can make a tremendous contribution to today’s business world

Description

Ready, Set, App! is an Android mobile app development competition for North Carolina high school students. Student groups are asked to develop a functional and original mobile app using a mobile app development platform (e.g., MIT App Inventor) to solve a problem in their community or school. The competition places an emphasis on both the technical skills needed to develop an app and the soft skills needed to succeed in the workplace.

Ready, Set, App!

Activity: Career Competition
Category: Exploration
Geographic County: Statewide
Target Audience: High School Students
Career Cluster/Skills: Marketing | Information Technology

RTI International

Activity: International non-profit internship
Category: Experience
Geographic County: RTP
Target Audience: Kindergarten–College students
Career Cluster/Skills: STEM

Description

Mentoring undergraduate and graduate students across the social and laboratory sciences, engineering, and international development. Our emphasis on building relationships with universities extends to our well-rounded internships program. By mentoring the brightest undergraduate and graduate minds in a variety of disciplines at our North Carolina headquarters and other offices in the United States and around the world, we help to expand our research and capabilities, while also creating a vibrant network of intern alumni who go on to assume roles at the institute and elsewhere.

Science in the Summer

Activity: Teacher Summer camp | Science fair
Category: Exploration
Geographic County: Statewide
Target Audience: Elementary School
Career Cluster/Skills: STEM

Description

Science in the Summer (SIS) provides fun, high-quality science education programming at sites in ten counties: Alamance, Chatham, Durham, Franklin, Granville, Harnett, Johnston, Orange, Vance, and Wake. Certified teachers lead SIS classes. The classes are designed to spark children's interest in science and show how science is part of everyday life. Experienced science educators from Morehead Planetarium and Science Center oversee the program.

Scratch

Activity: Game programming for children
Category: Exploration
Geographic County: Online resource
Target Audience: Ages 8–16
Career Cluster/Skills: STEM

Description

With Scratch, you can program your own interactive stories, games, and animations—and share your creations with others in the online community. Scratch helps young people learn to think creatively, reason systematically, and work collaboratively—essential skills for life in the 21st century. Scratch is a project of the Lifelong Kindergarten Group at the MIT Media Lab. It is provided free of charge

State of North Carolina Internship Program

Activity: Internship
Category: Experience
Geographic County: Statewide
Target Audience: Special population focus
Career Cluster/Skills: Government & Public Administration

Description

The State of North Carolina Internship Program offers students real-world experience in a wide range of state government workplaces. To be eligible, you must be a permanent North Carolina resident attending a college, university, law school, technical institute, or community college.

STEM WEST / STEM EAST

Activity: Curriculum development in STEM
Category: Awareness
Geographic County: East/West Piedmont
Target Audience: Grades K–16
Career Cluster/Skills: STEM

Description

STEM West advocates and supports the alignment of educational and occupational objectives through the regional workforce and community partnerships. STEM West is a non-profit organization involved with the Western Piedmont Workforce Development which is a part of the Western Piedmont Council of Governments.

STEMersion

Activity: Teacher Externship
Category: Exploration
Geographic County: Mecklenburg
Target Audience: Educators
Career Cluster/Skills: STEM

Description

MeckEd’s Career Pathways (CP) program is designed to address the increasing college & career readiness gaps facing our most vulnerable student populations. Through critical community partnerships, in particular Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools and Charlotte Works, CP serves low-income 16–21 year olds who face barriers to the workforce at Vance, Independence, Garinger and Harding High Schools.

Students@Work

Activity: Externship
Category: Exploration
Geographic County: Statewide
Target Audience: Middle School
Career Cluster/Skills: Government & Public Administration

Description

Students@Work is a 10-day blitz aimed at exposing middle schools students from across the state to real-world, business environments in their communities. We view job exposure as a critical first step in integrating work-based learning into the lives of NC students, adding relevancy to their classrooms, and helping students successfully navigate career pathways.

SummerSTEM

Activity: Internship
Category: Experience
Geographic County: Statewide
Target Audience: Special population focus
Career Cluster/Skills: Government & Public Administration

Description

SummerSTEM is a collaboration between WakeEd Partnership, the Wake County Public School System (WCPSS), and numerous STEM businesses and organizations in North Carolina. This eight-day professional development program exists to enrich the educator’s understanding of the knowledge and skills that are necessary to succeed in STEM careers.

Summer Youth Employment Program

Activity: Apprenticeship
Category: Experience
Geographic County: Wake
Target Audience: High School
Career Cluster/Skills: Government & Public Administration

Description

This award winning program serves low-income teens ages 15 to 19. Each teen earns a stipend while learning career skills from a local employer.

T-STEP Program

Activity: Mentoring | Internship
Category: Exploration
Geographic County: Wake | Pitt | Mecklenburg
Target Audience: Special population focus
Career Cluster/Skills: Government & Public Administration

Description

The TEACCH School Transition to Employment and Postsecondary Education Program (T-STEP) was developed to support transition to employment and/or postsecondary education settings for adolescents and young adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder who have received a standard course of study high school diploma

Teachers@Work

Activity: Teacher externship
Category: Exploration
Geographic County: Statewide
Target Audience: Educators
Career Cluster/Skills: Education & Training

Description

The North Carolina Business Committee for Education’s Teachers@Work® initiative connects educators to businesses for an experiential learning opportunity about employable workforce skills that can be transferred to the classroom environment.

United Way's "Plus 1"

Activity: Internship
Category: Experience
Geographic County: Guilford
Target Audience: Ages 16–24
Career Cluster/Skills: Government & Public Administration

Description

Plus 1 is a joint effort between United Way of Greater Greensboro and the City of Greensboro that seeks to connect local youth, ages 16–24 to summer employment.

Wake Tech's Work Based Learning Program

Description

At Wake Tech, students have several different opportunities for gaining practical work experience while pursuing a degree. Work-Based Learning (Co-op) allows students to apply what they have learned in the classroom in an actual workplace setting. Students work for an employer in a position directly related to their field of study.

Youth Work Internship Program

Activity: Internship
Category: Experience
Geographic County: Durham
Target Audience: High School
Career Cluster/Skills: Government & Public Administration

Description

The Durham YouthWork Internship Program offers Durham youth ages 14–24 the opportunity to gain work experience and develop skills through paid summer internships in local businesses, nonprofits and City and County government. The program operates through a partnership of the City of Durham, Durham County, Durham Public Schools, Durham Workforce Development Board, Durham Technical Community College, Made in Durham, My Brother’s Keeper and the Raleigh-Durham Electrical Joint Apprenticeship Training Council.