1. Guiding Principles DRAFT 6/1/2017
High Quality College and Career Readiness
Guiding Principle 1: Equitable Access 
Designated programs should prioritize students underrepresented in education enrollment and completion. To facilitate this, programs should be structured to eliminate barriers to student participation. Design might therefore include, but not be limited to, tuition-free participation, open enrollment without regard to prior academic performance, student supports to promote success, scalability, multiple entry points for students, and student supports to prepare students for entry into the program. 
Guiding Principle 2: Guided Academic Pathways
Designated programs should be structured around clear and detailed student academic pathways from secondary and post-secondary education with regard to coursework, sequencing, and experiences beyond the classroom. In the Early College pathway, students should be expected to complete at least twelve college credits that count towards a postsecondary credential.  Programs should also offer students substantive exposure to career opportunities in high demand fields, allowing them to make an informed decision about which career pathway to pursue.  Students should also be exposed to the authentic experience and academic rigor of postsecondary education.  This would require validating that courses are as rigorous as college level courses offered on campuses.  Further, programs should prioritize allowing students to take courses on college and university campuses where possible, and otherwise offer experiences intended to acculturate students to the post-secondary experience. 
Guiding Principle 3: Enhanced Student Support
Designated programs should incorporate sufficient wraparound services to promote academic success and completion, taking into consideration the needs of diverse populations of students.
Guiding Principle 4: Connection to Career
Designated programs should expose students to a variety of career opportunities including greater depth in careers relevant to their selected pathway, for example, by providing opportunities for targeted workforce and career skills development, career counseling, and elements of experiential and workplace learning.
Guiding Principle 5: Effective Partnerships
Designated programs should be a partnership between at least one institution of higher education and one public secondary school and/or district, and may include one or more employers.  Partnerships should present evidence that the program is consistent with collective bargaining agreements and memoranda of understanding detailing the nature of governance, budget, sustainability, scheduling, respective responsibilities, and performance measures. Programs should be sufficient in size to capture economies of scale goals and to ensure long-term sustainability.
DRAFT 6/1/2017

2. Components DRAFT 6/1/2017 Definition
High Quality College and Career Readiness
LABOR MARKET DEMAND
ADVISING
INTEGRATED INSTRUCTION
WORK-BASED LEARNING
CREDENTIAL PREPARATION
POSTSECONDARY LINKAGES
Students complete a college and career plan that identifies areas of aptitude and interest, explores career opportunities, and establishes a transition path to college, apprenticeship, and/or employment training.
Students engage in curriculum that develop both career alignment strategies and gain the awareness of job growth opportunities across the Commonwealth. Pathway programs vary based on the specificity of the alignment to an industry sector.
Students participate in a carefully designed sequence of integrated, rigorous instructional courses aligned to the student’s college and career plan.
Students participate in structured career readiness activities and career development education (CDE).
Students have the opportunity to progress towards and/or earn an industry-recognized credential and college credits toward a Certificate, Associates, or Baccalaureate degree.
Students participate in a wide range of college, apprenticeship, and employment training awareness, engagement, and preparation activities.
Definition
DRAFT 6/1/2017

3. Characteristics Distinct to:
Advising
Definition
Characteristics Distinct to:
Innovation Pathways
Early College
Students complete a college and career plan that identifies areas of aptitude and interest, explores career opportunities, and establishes a transition path to college, apprenticeship, and/or employment training.
Students participate in a multi-year process of college and career planning starting no later than 9th grade that is guided by counselors, uses an on-line platform to maintain the student’s career and college plan, and includes:
academic guidance
career awareness and exploration
college search and the development of a post-secondary plan
planning for non-academic challenges that may arise
Notes on Data Tracking:
No SIMS code for tracking
Evidence of career advising through other variables such as enrollment in HQCP, ILPs, etc.
DRAFT 6/1/2017

4. Component Characteristics Distinct to:
Labor Market Demand
Definition
Component Characteristics Distinct to:
Innovation Pathways
Early College
Students engage in curriculum that develop both career alignment strategies and gain the awareness of job growth opportunities across the Commonwealth. Pathway programs vary based on the specificity of the alignment to an industry sector.
Align with career opportunities in a broad sector category with high employer demand.
Program incorporates relevant regional and statewide labor market data as a method to inform students about career opportunities beyond college and supports students to make the connection between that information and their potential pathways.
Notes on Data Tracking:
No SIMS code for tracking
Use of 2-digit NAICS Code (Innovation) vs. SOC Code (Ch. 74). NAICS = ‘where you work’ versus SOC = ‘what you do.’ This may be impacted by Regional Planning sessions.
LMI alignment to be established at the outset during the designation phase
DRAFT 6/1/2017

5. Integrated Instruction
Definition
Component Characteristics Distinct to:
Innovation Pathways
Early College
Students participate in a carefully designed sequence of integrated, rigorous instructional courses aligned to the student’s college and career plan.
Must include a scope and sequence of a minimum of 4 courses with:
A minimum of 2 of the 4 courses must be technical courses related to the pathway’s industry sector concentration, and;
A minimum of 2 of the 4 courses must be college-level courses that provide the student an opportunity to gain dual-enrollment or AP/IB college credit.
The 2 technical courses may, or may not, overlap with the required 2 college-level courses, so long as there is a 4-course sequence. Students must complete Mass Core requirements by graduation.
Must include a scope and sequence evidencing a course of study allowing for all on-track students to graduate with at least 12 college credits. At a minimum, students should:
Complete English Composition I or the equivalent, and;
Complete a college-level mathematics course, and;
Identify as more interested in a STEM or non-STEM pathway for the purposes of completing an additional math course that will be appropriate for their field of study.
Students must complete Mass Core requirements by graduation.
Notes on Data Tracking:
CIP codes used for Chapter 74 participants
No additional SIMS codes for Innovation or Early College courses
DRAFT 6/1/2017

6. Component Characteristics Distinct to:
Work-Based Learning
Definition
Component Characteristics Distinct to:
Innovation Pathways
Early College
Students participate in structured career readiness activities and career development education (CDE).
Students participate in structured work readiness activities and work-based learning experiences. Students will complete 100 hours of a career immersion experience in either an internship or capstone class upon graduation.
Students engage in a program designed to reflect the integration of courses, career exploration, and work-based learning.
Notes on Data Tracking:
No SIMS code for tracking
Schools use local course codes for work-based learning experiences linked to SCS codes for state-level review
DRAFT 6/1/2017

7. Credential Preparation
Definition
Component Characteristics Distinct to:
Innovation Pathways
Early College
Students have the opportunity to progress towards and/or earn an industry-recognized credential and college credits toward a Certificate, Associates, or Baccalaureate degree.
Students progress towards earning an industry-recognized credential and college credits toward a Certificate, Associates, or Baccalaureate degree.
Program design should ensure that students are taking coursework aligning with MassTransfer Pathways.
Students have the opportunity to earn twelve awarded college credits, inclusive of but not limited to, at least one English Composition I or college-level mathematics course prior to high school graduation.
Program design should ensure that students are taking coursework that allows them to earn credit toward a degree credential.
Notes on Data Tracking:
Proposed modification of SIMS DOE031, with an addition of a comprehensive list of credentials, with unique 3-digit identifiers eliminating the current use of 2-digit codes for public and private issuers
DRAFT 6/1/2017

8. Post-Secondary Linkages
Definition
Component Characteristics Distinct to:
Innovation Pathways
Early College
Students participate in a wide range of college, apprenticeship, and employment training awareness, engagement, and preparation activities.
Students participate in a wide range of college, apprenticeship, and employment training awareness and engagement activities to prepare post-secondary plans.
A current, signed Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that defines an active partnership between the school district(s) and an institution of higher education (IHE) and/or employer should include language that outlines a plan inclusive of a credential stackable to a post-secondary plan.
A current, signed Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that defines an active partnership between the school district(s) and the institution of higher education (IHE) that addresses topics including, but not limited to:
the location and proposed faculty of the courses offered in the Early College High School program ;
the allocation of costs for tuition, fees, and textbooks;
student transportation;
program coordination plan;
student support plan;
faculty support plan; and
career partnership coordination plan.
Notes on Data Tracking:
Use the SCS code that now captures dual-enrollment to confirm in a student’s record that college credits have been earned (Code 4).
For AP exam proficiency, ensure students met the cut off score by using existing data to demonstrate these outcomes.
DRAFT 6/1/2017