Initiatives / Career Pathways / New Skills Boston

New Skills Boston

Our Vision

We believe in a city where all young people can engage in high-quality career learning that supports exploration, informed decision-making, and preparation for the future.

Our Aim

New Skills Boston aims to dramatically increase the number of Black, Latinx, students with disabilities, and multilingual learner students who participate in and persist through engaging, relevant, and equitable career pathways and are prepared to enter meaningful careers.

Our Approach

New Skills Boston transforms systems to drive equitable education and career outcomes for all students. We value and leverage the cultural wealth that students bring to schools through their knowledge, skills, and abilities to navigate their context despite systemic barriers, including structural racism.

How we drive change

Through equity-minded collaboration and alignment, we advance outcomes across four core components: high-quality, demand-driven career pathways; industry-aligned work-based learning; seamless postsecondary transitions; and equity for all students. Cross-sector partnerships and system building serve as foundations of the work.

What we're working on

  • Supporting four schools to develop and enhance career pathways
  • Collaborating toward aligned and transparent cross-sector data
  • Increasing access to work-based learning
  • Developing a policy agenda to increase access and facilitate seamless transitions

Who we are

New Skills Boston is powered by collaboration across K-12, two- and four-year institutions, workforce partners, local philanthropy and government. Our partners are:

  • The Boston Foundation
  • Boston Private Industry Council
  • Boston Public Schools
  • Bunker Hill Community College
  • City of Boston
  • Massachusetts Executive Office of Education
  • University of Massachusetts Boston

Access the New Skills Boston overview here and the 2022-2023 snapshot here.