College, Career and Life Readiness

In 2017, The Boston Opportunity Agenda convened a group of stakeholders from Boston’s education ecosystem. Gathering leaders from Boston Public Schools, the City of Boston, high education institutions, foundations and nonprofits throughout the City to define college, career and life readiness. In order to define readiness, we must first get clear on what we are getting our kids ready for. In sketching out expectations for the future based on insight into the industry, education, and civic landscapes, the group recognized that the future, particularly today, is characterized by its dynamism and that any singular vision narrows how we expect our graduates will live.  So instead, the group coalesced around a set of forces that are shaping trajectories for career, college and life.  These forces inform the skills and beliefs we believe students will need to succeed in this fast-shifting environment. Testing in practice and against research, we created definitions and measurements to understand what it means to be college, career and life ready in Boston.