Pathways Resource Library
Tools to help people understand their options
Explore messaging, research, and resources from across the field—along with customizable, white-label tools that you can adapt, brand as your own, and use in your organization’s communications—to help you reach key audiences with language that builds confidence and expands what’s possible.
Toolkit
Making Opportunity Real: A Framework for Communicating About Racial Justice
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
This Message Manual contains research-based language and guidance for anyone communicating about racial justice and equity in education. The manual introduces a Racial Justice and Racial Equity Frame that provides guidance for communicating about justice and equity in aspirational ways that move beyond buzzwords and invite new audiences into the conversation. The guide provides research-tested language and specific examples of how to apply the frame when sharing data, crafting story-driven content, and tailoring messages for different audiences.
White Paper
Accepting that Four Year College is No Longer a Pancea
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
This whitepaper resource by the American Student Assistance explains the importance of valuing students’ voices in conversations about their futures, and why families and communities must be OK with their plans including different forms of postsecondary education. Coverage includes the contextual differences of the college landscape "then vs. now", the pressures of decisionmaking and college attendence, policy recommendation, college students' aspirations, and how to guide them in times of uncertainty.
Research Report
Voices of Gen Z
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
To better understand Gen Z’s unique perspectives, Gallup and the Walton Family Foundation have partnered to gather opinions directly from members of Gen Z and to track those opinions and experiences over time. This nationally representative, multiyear study of thousands of members of Gen Z between the ages of 12 and 26 gives policymakers and researchers an invaluable resource for not only understanding this generation’s needs, but for making data-driven decisions to address them.
Playbook or Guidebook
Skills-Based Sourcing and Hiring Playbook
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
This playbook is a step-by-step guide to implementing more equitable and effective approaches to employee recruiting, hiring, and advancement by embracing skills-first talent management practices.
Article, Research Report
Failing on Purpose
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
This survey explores the perspectives and experiences of those in closest contact with the American education system—namely parents, current students, and recent graduates. In partnership with YouGov, American Compass surveyed representative American parents young adults about their views on the purpose of public education; their reflections on the way that the school system has performed; and their desire for reforms to both K–12 schools and higher education. They found that Americans want (1) a public education system less focused on college, more focused on preparing people to build decent lives in their communities, and (2) education reforms to emphasize non-college pathways.
Toolkit
Roadtrip Nation Storytelling Toolkit
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
This storytelling toolkit outlined the fundamentals of Road Trip Nation's storytelling approach, developed over two decades of co-creating these stories with young people, so that other nonprofits and impact-minded organizations can amplify young people’s voices and stories in their own work.
Research Report
Exploring Equitable Postsecondary Value
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
Based on research from the Postsecondary Value Commission, this interactive data tool puts the power of the Value Framework at your fingertips, equipping you with data on the economic value that institutions deliver to their students.
Research Report
Preparing our Students for the Real World
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
This is a thought paper for school and community leaders. It takes an honest look at the reality of what was facing America students and its workforce in 2019 and what brought America to this reality. It also provides clarity and direction to bring greater effectiveness and scalability to Career Connected Learning practices.
Research Report
Family Voices
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
Faced with unprecedented change in the postsecondary landscape, America's families are wrestling with questions of college, careers, skills development and meaningful work. This study aimed to understand American parents' aspirations for their children after high school, as well as the barriers they face to following a preferred postsecondary path.
Filters
Toolkit
Making Opportunity Real: A Framework for Communicating About Racial Justice
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
This Message Manual contains research-based language and guidance for anyone communicating about racial justice and equity in education. The manual introduces a Racial Justice and Racial Equity Frame that provides guidance for communicating about justice and equity in aspirational ways that move beyond buzzwords and invite new audiences into the conversation. The guide provides research-tested language and specific examples of how to apply the frame when sharing data, crafting story-driven content, and tailoring messages for different audiences.
White Paper
Accepting that Four Year College is No Longer a Pancea
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
This whitepaper resource by the American Student Assistance explains the importance of valuing students’ voices in conversations about their futures, and why families and communities must be OK with their plans including different forms of postsecondary education. Coverage includes the contextual differences of the college landscape "then vs. now", the pressures of decisionmaking and college attendence, policy recommendation, college students' aspirations, and how to guide them in times of uncertainty.
Research Report
Voices of Gen Z
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
To better understand Gen Z’s unique perspectives, Gallup and the Walton Family Foundation have partnered to gather opinions directly from members of Gen Z and to track those opinions and experiences over time. This nationally representative, multiyear study of thousands of members of Gen Z between the ages of 12 and 26 gives policymakers and researchers an invaluable resource for not only understanding this generation’s needs, but for making data-driven decisions to address them.
Playbook or Guidebook
Skills-Based Sourcing and Hiring Playbook
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
This playbook is a step-by-step guide to implementing more equitable and effective approaches to employee recruiting, hiring, and advancement by embracing skills-first talent management practices.
Article, Research Report
Failing on Purpose
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
This survey explores the perspectives and experiences of those in closest contact with the American education system—namely parents, current students, and recent graduates. In partnership with YouGov, American Compass surveyed representative American parents young adults about their views on the purpose of public education; their reflections on the way that the school system has performed; and their desire for reforms to both K–12 schools and higher education. They found that Americans want (1) a public education system less focused on college, more focused on preparing people to build decent lives in their communities, and (2) education reforms to emphasize non-college pathways.
Toolkit
Roadtrip Nation Storytelling Toolkit
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
This storytelling toolkit outlined the fundamentals of Road Trip Nation's storytelling approach, developed over two decades of co-creating these stories with young people, so that other nonprofits and impact-minded organizations can amplify young people’s voices and stories in their own work.
Research Report
Exploring Equitable Postsecondary Value
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
Based on research from the Postsecondary Value Commission, this interactive data tool puts the power of the Value Framework at your fingertips, equipping you with data on the economic value that institutions deliver to their students.
Research Report
Preparing our Students for the Real World
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
This is a thought paper for school and community leaders. It takes an honest look at the reality of what was facing America students and its workforce in 2019 and what brought America to this reality. It also provides clarity and direction to bring greater effectiveness and scalability to Career Connected Learning practices.
Research Report
Family Voices
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
This resource may be shared with proper attribution to the organization.
Faced with unprecedented change in the postsecondary landscape, America's families are wrestling with questions of college, careers, skills development and meaningful work. This study aimed to understand American parents' aspirations for their children after high school, as well as the barriers they face to following a preferred postsecondary path.








