Organizing for Success: California’s Regional Education Partnerships

As education reforms increasingly focus on the needs of students as they cross education systems and enter the workforce, regional partnerships, or consortia, are developing across the country to meet a wide range of students’ needs. While regional partnerships have existed in different forms for decades to serve community needs, current partnerships are focusing on connecting education systems to prevent students—particularly traditionally underserved students—from falling through the cracks. Specific efforts can include: aligning curricular expectations across high school and college to reduce the need for remedial coursework; working with business partners to develop curricular pathways, degree programs, and certificate programs that will help students find meaningful employment and help regions meet workforce needs; and improving student support services to increase high school and college graduation  rates.

There is a great deal of experimentation with different kinds of regional partnerships across California. This report is aimed at encouraging new and existing partnerships to learn from the growth and development of current partnerships. It highlights issues that support or impede consortia processes, their work to support student success, and their sustainability.