1. Jocelyn Hively
Daniel Ledesma
Tirsa Tovar

2. California Linked Learning District
Initiative
 Managed by ConnectEd
 Reform high school systems
 Linked Learning approach
- Nine California school districts
- Develop and implement multiple pathways
- Offers full range of career pathways in high school

3. Linked Learning Pathways Program
 Integrates real-world professions
 Four Elements of Linked Learning
- Rigorous academics
- Real-world technical skills
- Work-based learning
- Personalized support

4. Linked Learning
 Opens doors to all students
 Increases opportunities
 Feeling of belong: improves chances in
success
 Career and college ready

5. Porterville Unified School District
1 Academy of Engineering (Harmony Magnet Academy)
2 Academy of Performing Arts (Harmony Magnet Academy)
3 Digital Communication and Design (Granite Hills High School)
4 Multimedia and Technology Academy (Monache High School)
5 Partnership Academy of Business (Porterville High School)
6 Partnership Academy of Health Sciences (Porterville High School)
7 Alternative Energy Resource Occupations (AERO) Academy
(Porterville High School)

6. 8th Grade Showcase

7. Prompt:
Reflect upon your experience as a Pathways leader. Use the
Likert scale below rate your level of difficulty with the
implementation of the following in your Linked Learning
program:
1 = None 2 = Slight 3 = Moderate 4 = Extreme
Survey Scale

8. Findings from Surveys
Standards Rated by Principals as Moderately or Extremely Difficult
to Implement in their Linked Learning Program
California Professional Standards for Educational Leaders
Standard
1
Standard
2
Standard
3
Standard
4
Standard
5
Standard
6
Strathmore HS X
Granite Hills X X X X X X
Harmony X
Porterville HS X X X
Monache - - - - - -

9. California Professional Standards for Educational Leaders
Standard 1: The school administrator is an educational leader who promotes the success of all
students by facilitating the development, articulation, implementation, and stewardship of a
vision of learning that is shared and supported by the school community.
Standard 2: A school administrator is an educational leader who promotes the success of all
students by advocating, nurturing, and sustaining a school culture and instructional program
conducive to student learning and staff professional growth.
Standard 3: A school administrator is an educational leader who promotes the success of all
students by ensuring management of the organization, operations, and resources for a safe,
efficient, and effective learning environment.
Standard 4: A school administrator is an educational leader who promotes the success of all
students by collaborating with families and community members, responding to diverse
community interests and needs, and mobilizing community resources.
Standard 5: A school administrator is an educational leader who promotes the success of all
students by modeling a personal code of ethics and developing professional leadership
capacity.
Standard 6: A school administrator is an educational leader who promotes the success of all
students by understanding, responding to, and influencing the larger political, social,
economic, legal, and cultural context.

10. Findings from Focus Groups:
District Administrators
THEMES
Director Pathway
Coaches
Work-Based
Learning
Coordinator
Communication X X X
Collaboration X X X
Professional Development X X X
Vision X X X
Accountability X X

11. Findings from District Staff Focus Groups:
Communication/Collaboration
 “Communication structure built around
common vision/common mission.”
 Monthly meetings with every stakeholder group
 Streamlined communication
 Cross-sharing/cross-communication
 Everyone has a voice
 Collaborative effort, not silos

12. Findings from District Staff Focus Groups:
Vision/Leadership
● “Linked Learning or not, a good leader should
be visible, have an open door policy, be a part
of pathway team meetings, build mutual respect
with teacher teams, have trust between each
other, and keep students at the center.”
● “Building trust, working collaboratively vs.
dictatorial”
● “Be there and demonstrate that you are there to
support”
● “Know how it (LL) works, believe it works”

13. Findings from District Staff Focus Groups:
Professional Development
● Training
-ConnectEd / Conferences
● Summer Orientation
-Project-building and integration
-Pathway update
-Business leaders bringing relevance
● Externships
-Partner with local businesses
-Present their findings (accountability)
-Relevance in the classrooms

14. Findings from District Staff Focus Groups:
Accountability
 “Having regular meetings is crucial..teams look forward to a place where
we can all get together and have opportunity to share out...we need their
suggestions so we know how we can be of service to them.”
 “Accountability is key to ensure policy and procedures are living
documents, not collecting dust.”
 Annual self-assessments are completed around criteria of LL
 ConnectEd Principal Coach - walk-throughs, engagements, and
collaboration.
 A lot of accountability checks along the way.
 Working together with business partners to become familiar with each
other’s systems.

15. Findings from Principal Focus Groups:
Responsibilities of Principals
 Leads or works with other principals
- Healthy relationship with cabinet
 Increased professional development
- Conferences and Meetings:
 Advisory Meetings, Pathway meetings
- ConnectEd once a year
- Commitment

16. Findings from Principal Focus Groups:
Principal’s relationship with Teachers
 Challenge to get teachers to do extra work
and put in more effort
 Active rather than passive role
- Developing relationships with teachers
- Provide support in training and resources
- More expectations, meetings, and lessons

17. Findings from Principal Focus Groups:
Principal’s relationship with Teachers
 Instructional Capacity
- Walk-Throughs
- Integration: collaboration not only within
department
- Common Prep:
 Needs for students in the department
 Projects
 Collaboration opportunities

18. Findings from Principal Focus Groups:
Principal’s relationship with Coaches
 Pathway Leads
- Orchestrate meetings
- Advise and consult principals
Pathway leaders provide additional help so
there is less stress on the principals

19. Culture of Linked Learning
 Commitment to vision of LL
- Prepare students to be college and career
ready
 Communication within and across groups of
stakeholders
 Commitment to professional development
 Strive for equitable and inclusive practices
 Partnering with community

20. Hopes and Fears
 Hopes:
- Expanding and adding new certified Linked
Learning Pathways
- Opening 3 more Pathways within next 3 years
- Enrollment opportunity for everyone who has a
desire
● Fears:
- Limited space and availability
● Lottery
- Funding

22. Theory of Action
If Fresno State incorporates guided, hands-on
LL externships in their Ed. Admin. program,
pre-service administrators will have the
qualities and knowledge base needed to
effectively implement LL pathways program
and ultimately improve student successes.

23. Instructional Core
 Current administrators’(teachers) knowledge
and skill,
 Pre-service-administrators’(students)
engagement in their own learning, and
 Hands-on, guided LL externships (content)

24. Strategy
 By supplementing the seminar in instructional
supervision with field-based externships in LL-
certified schools, Fresno State can strengthen the
instructional core with the objective of qualities and
knowledge base of future LL administrators, thereby
raising student performance.
 Coherence among actions at the university and
districts with LL programs will make the
university's chosen strategy more scalable and
sustainable.

25. Shareholders
 Fresno State University and certified LL
Pathway staff.
 Governing bodies including Ed. Admin.
program administrators and district and site
administrators.

26. Structure
 ConnectEd to arrange instructors for seminars and
externship supervision.
 University and site administrators has responsibility
and accountability for results.
 University and District collaborate on expectations
and evaluations for interns.

27. Systems
 Opportunities for early exposure to LL event.
– Courses that include embedded fieldwork.
– Interviews and participant observations of LL
administrator
– Research project related to LL
 A blueprint of tasks and experiences that are essential
for LL fieldwork.
 Assessment of student progress and LL fieldwork
outcomes.

28. Resources
 Current district and site administrators
 James Irvine Foundation
 ConnectEd
- Consultant
- Summer Institute
- Experiential site-visits
- Curriculum development and training
- Linked Learning Alliance
 Professional Learning Community among university and
district staff
 SCOPE sessions available yearly

29. Environment
 Student variables
- Schedule, availability, distance from LL school
 Community variables
- Community leaders/local businesses’ lack of or
inability to support LL program
 Mismatch between student and school assignment
 Sustained funding for LL program
 Politics