What We Do + Action Plan
PrepareRI is one of the most comprehensive plans in the nation to improve youth career readiness.
What we do
PrepareRI is an initiative to prepare all Rhode Island youth with the skills they need for jobs that pay. It is one of the most ambitious plans in the nation to improve youth career readiness and represents a strategic partnership between the Rhode Island government, private industry leaders, the public education system, universities, and non-profits across the state. PrepareRI launched in January 2017 with a $2,000,000 New Skills for Youth (NSFY) grant from JP Morgan Chase. Rhode Island was one of only ten states to win the competitive grant.
The initiative is built on the belief that all students should be prepared for success in college and career. There is not an either/or choice; students should be prepared for both, so they can make an authentic, well-informed choice between entering the postsecondary pathway or career of their choice upon graduation from the K12 system. PrepareRI is for all youth aged 11 – 24 years old.
PrepareRI benefits our students, businesses, and economy
For students, PrepareRI aims to close the gap between what they learn in school and what they need for in-demand jobs. The initiative was built on the belief that all young people — regardless of their background or intended career — will need some form of postsecondary credential and work experience to be successful.
For businesses, PrepareRI ensures that employers have the workforce they require to thrive in the economy of tomorrow.
We’ve been focused on ensuring that:
All career pathway programs are aligned to Rhode Island’s high-demand career fields
All high school students have access to a work-based learning experience, such as an internship in a relevant career field
All students, starting in middle school, have career exploration opportunities and individual learning plans based on their strengths and interests
Over half of high school students graduate with college credit or an industry credential
Over half of high school students participate in career and technical education (CTE)
Action Plans
The original PrepareRI Action plan was developed in 2016 for the initial NSFY grant of $2M. Then, in 2022 the PrepareRI2.0 Action Plan was adopted by the Rhode Island Board of Education as the state’s PreK-20 Strategic plan for Education.
PrepareRI 1.0 included eight priorities and goals for 2021:
Employer Engagement: All career pathway programs will be aligned to Rhode Island’s high-demand career fields;
Diploma Plus: All high schools will have access to opportunities to earn college credit or industry credentials;
Work-based Learning: All high schools will have access to work-based learning at their school;
Career and Technical Education (CTE): All students will participate in a CTE program;
Counseling and career exploration: All students in grades 6-12 will have Individual Learning Plans (ILPs);
Outcome-focused Accountability: Agencies will use data on students’ college and career outcomes to evaluate schools and programs;
Aligned funding: Align funding streams around a common strategy for building career pathway programs for all students;
Outreach and professional learning: All schools in the state will participate in PrepareRI professional learning
From 2017 until 2021, the lead agencies of PrepareRI were able to meet many of the ambitious goals and priorities of the original plan:
In partnership with Skills for Rhode Island’s Future, the PrepareRI Internship Program launched, providing high quality, paid internships for more than 1,282 students across the state.
Through the PrepareRI Dual Enrollment fund, dual and concurrent course-taking has increased by more than 131% across public high schools in Rhode Island.
Through the CS4RI initiative (Computer Science for Rhode Island) CS course-taking increased statewide by more than 470%.
Leveraged education and community experts through the PrepareRI Ambassador program, with over 50 Ambassadors participating and creating statewide resources since inception.
Launched Rhode Island’s first ever summer learning initiative – SAIL (Summer Academy for Interactive Learning), serving over 14,000 students statewide to respond to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The original PrepareRI plan was extended for one year to 2021 due to the Covid-19 pandemic. As the state agencies began to consider the next phase of the work, there was an opportunity to refine the scope of PrepareRI. PrepareRI shifted to exclusively focus on (1) overlap, work at the intersection of at least two of the three participating agencies, and (2) hand-offs, work supporting student transitions between systems.