Workshops

At Liguori Academy, postsecondary planning is not a senior-year activity. It is a four-year developmental process embedded in Workforce coursework for every student in grades 9–12. This session explores how intentional, cross-sector partnerships can be designed to support students continuously from early career exploration through postsecondary transition. Grounded in Liguori’s “Boundless Opportunities” model, the program aligns Workforce curriculum, Social and Emotional Learning (SEL), industry partnerships, internships, and individualized advising into a coherent youth-to-career ecosystem. Participants will learn how Liguori engages industry professionals through a range of partnership structures, including its LIFT (Liguori Impact Force Team) advisory board, to support student success through classroom engagement, workplace visits, mentoring, job shadowing, and hiring pipelines.

This session aims to provide attendees with more information about the DHS system, programs and youth experience, to help support the system goal of providers continuing to increase access to C2L for this population.  We will share key data points to establish a shared baseline of knowledge; walk through a few of the programs families and youth interact with when they are involved with DHS; and how providers can support youth involved with DHS.  We will also address specific questions providers may have about working with youth involved with DHS. 

Designing Data-Informed Pathways: Using Assessment & Coaching to Strengthen Cross‑Program Partnerships, for the C2L-PHL Work-based Learning Institute

Youth workforce programs are often measured by enrollment, completion, and placement. Long-term sustainability, however, depends on demonstrating real economic mobility. This session introduces a scalable approach to tracking income outcomes over time without surveys, tax records, or Social Security numbers. Drawing on Magnolia Impact Solutions’ methodology for quarterly mobility tracking, participants will learn how programs can monitor short- and long-term income changes, compare outcomes to matched peer groups, and generate credible evidence for funders and policymakers. The session will provide practical steps for integrating mobility measurement into sustainability planning so that programs can align funding, strategy, and youth outcomes around what truly matters.

Psychological safety is essential for engaging and retaining young people across career-connected learning, postsecondary transitions, and early workforce experiences. This interactive session explores how adult behaviors, communication styles, and power dynamics shape young people’s willingness to engage, take risks, and persist. Participants will identify practices that support or undermine psychological safety and learn practical strategies—such as empathetic listening and strength-based language—to foster trust, inclusion, and resilience in youth-serving environments.

Fostering entrepreneurial mindsets can empower young people to embody a growth mindset, tap into their creativity, and build cross-sector skills that will support postsecondary success. In this session, you’ll learn about key terms in entrepreneurship, envision a future where students tap into entrepreneurial mindsets, and explore strategies that can be used with middle and high school students to prepare them for their future.

During this session, we will present the work we do with students in preparation for summer work experiences and how they will be supported during the journey. 

This session explores how students can act as active partners in employer engagement, helping expand access to career conversations, work-based learning, and internships. Participants will walk through a student-driven model that complements traditional employer partnerships, including the structures and guardrails that make student outreach effective and appropriate.

This session offers practical strategies to support neurodivergent learners, including autistic learners and those with other disabilities, in workforce development and youth development programs. While this session focuses on neurodiversity, everything we touch on is beneficial for youth with other disabilities and all learners. 

Foundations for the Future: Program Sustainability