Career ready by Design
A statewide initiative that brings together Georgia’s technical colleges, high schools, and employers to co-create dual enrollment pathways that help students earn college credit, build in-demand skills, and step directly into high-wage, high-demand careers.
How might we help Georgia technical colleges design and scale dual enrollment pathways that are clear, affordable, and connected to high-demand careers?
OVERVIEW
Career Ready by Design is a two-year, state-led initiative in Georgia that brings together the Technical College System of Georgia, five of its colleges, and 10 to 15 high schools to co-design and scale equitable dual enrollment pathways that connect high school, college, and in-demand careers.
Through human-centered design support from Education Design Lab, these cross-sector teams are creating pathways that enable students — especially those historically underrepresented in early college — to earn at least 12 transferable college credits that stack to credentials leading to high-wage, high-demand jobs, while the state builds a policy, funding, and data roadmap that can be replicated nationally.
I’m a first-generation college student. I grew up poor, raised by a teen mom, and no one expected me to go to college, including me. On my first day of college class, I found the door locked and a sign that said, ‘In lieu of class, read chapter one.’ I didn’t know what ‘in lieu of’ meant. I went back to my residence hall, looked it up, and convinced myself I didn’t belong. Not because I wasn’t capable, but because I didn’t understand the sign on the door. That moment changed how I see education. Access is not enough. Language matters. Clear pathways matter. Students should not feel lost simply because the system was not built for them.
Dr. Jessica Lauritsen
Strategic Impact Director, Education Design Lab
CAREER READY BY DESIGN FRAMEWORK
Career Ready by Design builds on the Lab’s longstanding collaboration with states and community colleges to redesign learn-and-work systems and generate national insights that inform future policy and practice.
We applied for this [initiative] because we want dual enrollment to be more than just access. We want it to be designed and career aligned with our high-demand careers. Right now, pathway quality and student navigation are our main focus across the entire state.
Joseph Echols
Executive Director of Secondary Education Initiatives for the Technical College System of Georgia.
IMPACT
We don’t just design programs — we design for system-level impact.
We change systems by centering New Majority Learners in a collaborative process that results in a ripple effect of transformation across multiple levels, from individual programs and colleges, to regions and state systems.
We measure progress through four elements of change that signal system transformation:
NEWS
NEWS SUB
FEbraury 2026
Education Design Lab launches Career Ready by Design to strengthen dual enrollment pathways in Georgia
PARTNERS + FUNDERS
Five participating Technical College System of Georgia (TCSG) colleges with 15 partner high schools in Georgia, K–12 districts, employers, and state/regional workforce agencies as cross-sector collaborators.
Atlanta Technical College
- Fulton Schools College and Career Academy
- Hapeville Charter Career Academy
Central Georgia Technical College
- Houston College and Career Academy
- Jones County College and Career Academy
- W.S. Hutchings College and Career Academy
Coastal Pines Technical College
- Golden Isles College and Career Academy
- Southern Pines College and Career Academy
Chattahoochee Technical College
- Bartow County College and Career Academy
- Cartersville College and Career Academy
- Paulding County College and Career Academy
Wiregrass Georgia Technical College
- Fitzgerald College and Career Academy
- WIN College and Career Academy
- Wiregrass Regional College and Career Academy