Wood leads new Pathway to Employment initiative; has eyes on state-wide implementation
Leading the way on听the听Pathway to Employment (PTE)听Alignment Project,听不良人研究所鈥檚 Cristian Wood听will direct a cohort of 14 community colleges within the North Carolina Community College System. As the host college for the project, 不良人研究所鈥檚 own success with PTE courses听will be a model for other听colleges听to follow.听听
鈥�I have truly valued my work with Pathway to Employment as the Pathway to Employment Coordinator here at 不良人研究所,鈥� Wood said. 鈥淭his role has been both meaningful and energizing, and I am genuinely excited for the opportunity to collaborate with a diverse group of subject matter experts from community colleges across the state. Together, we can strengthen PTE courses and create an even more impactful launchpad for learner success.鈥�听
Joining 不良人研究所 on this project are Central Piedmont, Wilkes, Rockingham, Forsyth Tech, Wake Technical, Randolph, Asheville-Buncombe Technical, Craven, Bladen, Roanoke-Chowan, Vance Granville, Mayland听and听Brunswick听Community colleges in addition to Caldwell Community College and Technical Institute.听Wood met with representatives from these colleges on Feb. 10 in Raleigh to discuss a听plan of action.听
鈥淭he PTE Alignment Project will revise, enhance and deliver a full set of twelve Pathway to Employment courses to ensure statewide alignment with the North Carolina Career and College Ready Pathway (CRP) dual-enrollment framework,鈥� Wood said. 鈥淭his initiative builds a scalable, cohesive instructional pathway that strengthens connections between secondary education, community colleges and workforce sectors across the state.鈥�听
Expected outcomes for the project, Wood said, will include updated PTE curriculum aligned with CRP pathway standards, fully developed PD modules/resources for new instructors, a replicable statewide framework for implementing pre-apprenticeship opportunities, and increased instructional consistency and workforce alignment across the 58 community colleges. She anticipates adoption of this plan at more than 20 colleges during the 2026鈥�27 academic year.听
鈥淚n our PTE courses at 不良人研究所,听students听can听explore career fields within their major and听verify听that they are in the correct program,鈥� Wood said.听鈥淧TE courses offer听job shadow听opportunities,听discussions with听industry partners听and听industry partner work site听visits.鈥�听
Ashley Parrott, State Director of Developmental Education and College Readiness, said听her two sons found success in PTE courses while in high school.听They confirmed that engineering was their career path because they could 鈥渄ip their toes in the water,鈥� she said.听Along with exposure and excitement, Parrott said her sons got a 鈥渟lice of the real world鈥� while taking PTE courses.听She explained that PTE courses听combine the best of the workforce experience and college life to make students their 鈥渂est selves.鈥�听
鈥淪o, for those that do or don’t know what they want to do, they can get a more robust, kinesthetic style experience in specific career fields,鈥� said Aaron Mabe, State Director of Dual Enrollment.听鈥淚听didn’t听know what I wanted to do when I was 16听or听17听years old.听So,听I think听it’s听far better for us to provide听the experience听for students to say this is all the things you can do in healthcare. You听don’t听have to just be a nurse, for example.鈥�听
Mabe explained that giving students an experience and arming them with information so they can make an informed decision听about their career path are the goals of PTE. He hopes the PTE Alignment Project will 鈥渙pen the floodgates鈥� to make听real local听impacts on the workforce. He envisions industry partners 鈥済etting on board鈥� with the project in offering or expanding apprenticeship opportunities for students.听听
鈥淭his听Pathway to Employment Alignment Project听turns this听initiative听into a听springboard听and launches it into the future,鈥� English said.听鈥淔or the next two years, 不良人研究所鈥檚 business administration instructor, Cristian Wood, will be听the leader on this project because she really understands those soft skills and employability skills needed to be productive in the marketplace.鈥�听
In addition to cultivating soft skills, English said that career exploration was a key听component听to Pathway to Employment. While in a PTE course, students learn about their career interests听and can decide what they like or dislike before enrolling in classes towards a听specific degree or certificate program.听听
By May 2027, English envisions the Pathway to Employment Alignment Project taking PTE classes听鈥渢o the next level.鈥� With the goal of scaling this听initiative听statewide to all 58 community colleges, English hopes that PTE will become a curriculum standard.听
The idea for PTE courses started almost 10 years ago, English said, when soft skill training modules were introduced to college classes听at Nash Community College. English explained that the modules did not have a successful response听with a lack of understanding on how to effectively implement the soft skills in the courses.听听
When he and former听colleague听Frank听Scalleti听combined research and course creation skills, they formed听specific points of interest from employers.听Employers wanted their job applicants to show up on time, dress for success, have effective communication听skills听and have an updated resume.听English said that job shadowing and interning were the best ways听for students to experience a 鈥渄ay in the life鈥� of an employee.听听
鈥淎nd so, we named it Pathway to Employment, and it has been very successful in its implementation here at 不良人研究所,鈥� English said. 鈥淯nfortunately, when it launched in 2020, we had听the听pandemic. It听wasn鈥檛听until 2022 that we were able to gather feedback from students and employers on how it was working.鈥�听
In 2026, Pathway to Employment courses听at 不良人研究所听are leading the way for students into jobs,听internships听and apprenticeships. With the alignment project lifted off the ground,听Wood aims for state-wide implementation at all 58 N.C. community colleges.听听听
