Our guest for this episode of College & Career Readiness Radio is Julia Freeland Fisher, Director of Education Research at the Clayton Christensen Institute.

Julia explores how student success is shaped not just by what they know, but who they know—emphasizing the critical role of social capital in college and career readiness.

Julia, author of Who You Know, shares research showing that approximately half of jobs and internships are accessed through personal connections, making network-building an essential component of opportunity.

Many educators focus on expanding students’ networks by introducing them to new people, but Julia encourages a shift in mindset: networking can start with deeper, more intentional conversations with existing contacts—family, teachers, coaches, and community members.

Research from six career-connected learning programs reveals that students often know more people than they realize but aren’t having meaningful conversations about their futures with these connections.

There’s a wealth of “under-capitalized social capital” around students, and schools can help students tap into these existing relationships for guidance, mentorship, and opportunity.

Students from higher socioeconomic backgrounds inherit broader professional networks, giving them a significant advantage in the knowledge economy, which is why Julia encourages schools to develop systems that unleash students’ natural networks and help to build stronger ones.

Data shows that young people whose parents attended college are twice as likely to know professionals like lawyers, CEOs, and policymakers.

Julia says that technology offers powerful tools for connecting students with professionals and mentors beyond their immediate community, breaking down geographic and socioeconomic barriers.

Julia argues that the “unit of change” isn’t just relationships, but the quality of conversations students have about their futures.

Students benefit from both “career chats” (guest speaker-style, informational sessions) and deeper “career conversations” (two-way, trust-based discussions about aspirations and anxieties).

Julia shares that OECD research shows that students who experience three to five useful career chats each year see measurable wage premiums a decade later, but only if they find these interactions meaningful.

Career conversations are especially impactful when adults: 1. Affirm students’ career-related anxieties; 2. Highlight skills students are already demonstrating; 3. Share their own career wisdom and experiences, regardless of field.

She reveals that these practices boost long-term career satisfaction, clarity, and alignment between ambitions and actions.

Julia encourages students and educators to map their existing networks and identify who they could talk to about their futures.

She wants schools to equip all students with conversation starters and questions to spark new, future-focused discussions with familiar adults.

We must regularly measure and update students’ relationship maps to track progress and ensure every student is building and diversifying their network as part of the post-secondary plan.

The ultimate goal: students leave school not just with knowledge, but with a network that supports their long-term success, life-time earnings, and happiness at work.

If you want to learn more about supporting internships, work-based learning experiences, and other ways to help students build their network, book a time to see a demo of the MaiaLearning.

If you want to talk to the host of the show about college and career readiness, book a time to meet.

Our guest for this episode of College & Career Readiness Radio is Dan Gonzalez from District C.

Dan starts with the need for students to come together to solve real world problems through District C’s Teamship process.

Dan says that students are motivated by solving real problems for real people that add value to organizations and the lives of others. This moves from individual compliance to adding value to the world.

He says that too many students graduate from high school without having solved “real,” “meaningful, or “urgent” problems.

Industry partners are eager to use District C to help solve problems because they often bring forward problems that they can’t solve internally, and students bring creativity and new thinking to problems that organizations are struggling to solve.

Don’t miss the story that Dan tells about a solution that students came up with that was totally unexpected by the business owner.

Dan says that they intentionally don’t allow students to pick their project because they want the purest outcomes from team-based problem solving skills that can be transferable to other projects.

Don’t miss what Dan says about helping students get better at the work. Just by being on a team doesn’t mean that their skills improve. Students need a coach.

Dan tells listeners that students need tools that they can use to facilitate their teamwork. He explains two tools–questioning and take-five–that any educator can use in WBL or classroom instruction.

Mitch Weather’s focus on durable skills, in particular executive functioning skill, came up on the show in terms of the skills-based movement versus knowledge acquisition.

Team internships follow a process that includes individual research and the strategy is very close to what a jigsaw does when it comes together well.

It’s important to understand the work of the coach in teamships. Dan explains how that has evolved, and how they train their coaches.

Dan ends with a sense of urgency around the need for work-based learning for all students in every school.

If you want to learn more about supporting internships and other work-based learning experiences, book a time to see a demo of the MaiaLearning.

If you want to talk to the host of the show about college and career readiness, book a time to meet.

Our guest for this episode of College & Career Readiness Radio is Dr. Christopher Nesmith.

The episode starts with a conversation about trust between schools and industry partners, and Dr. Nesmith is candid about the need for schools to understand what the partner needs and not just what the school (and students) can get from a partner. This was a reminder of our episode with Kristy Volesky.

Chris says that the best case scenario is when the schools and the industry partners are united on a clear and common vision for what they’re seeking to accomplish.

He says that many partners will get involved simply based on philanthropic efforts, and starting with philanthropy is fine but that can’t be the end-point.

Don’t miss what he says about the two-way relationship regarding what students need to be work-ready. If there’s a mechanism for feedback, partners can tell schools how to better prepare students at the individual level.

Christopher says that we can capitalize on students’ skills and abilities in the workforce, including product development in a way that drives the future of a company using high school students and their creativity.

You’ll want to hear what he says about the pathways that his district supports and the details of what students earn as graduates.

He gives some really practical advice about governance and how to cut the red tape of work-based learning at the same time connecting students to the organizations that will credential their skills anyway.

Chris says that the fundamental reason why pathways, credentialing, and WBL aren’t scaling is because the money is funneled through grants and the grant awardees–whether school districts or nonprofit organizations–don’t understand the bureaucracies of the individual industries.

Listen to what he says about the problems with isolation. Higher education, K12, industry partners, and accreditation agencies need to come together for work-based learning to flourish.

Christopher explains what he learned in Switzerland and Germany about the divide between college and career and what they did to make sure it was a binary decision for students.

Dr. Nesmith says that one of the solutions is "permeability." In other words, career and technical education (CTE) shouldn’t just lead to a credential or a job, it should lead to a path into a 2- or 4-year university as well.

Chris describes what mastery-based learning and even credit acquisition can look like, and he calls for CTE teachers to lead the way in this work. We refer to ACTE several times in the show.

Christopher leads an AASA group called Redefining Ready, which studies state examples of work-based learning and pathways.

If you want to discuss work-based learning, industry partners, and other aspects of college and career readiness, book a time with the host of the show with the host of the show here.

If you want to see a solution for working with business partners and tracking WBL for students, book a demo here.