The Center for Advanced Professional Studies (CAPS) is a high school innovation program where students participate in authentic, profession-based learning opportunities. CAPS programs exist across 19 states and three countries (U.S., Canada, and India). Actual employers mentor students in their workplace, and students use industry-standard tools to solve real-world problems.
Some strands offered include bioscience, engineering, medicine, and healthcare, to name a few. These learning environments allow participants to explore potential careers based on their passions, purpose, and strengths. CAPS adheres to five core values that guide each program: profession-based learning, professional skills development, self-discovery and exploration, entrepreneurial mindset, and responsiveness.
CAPS started in Kansas at the Blue Valley School District and has grown to five affiliates with five school districts sending students. Missouri has the largest program activity nationwide, with 21 affiliate programs and 69 school districts sending students. The program offers a playbook for those who are looking to launch profession-based learning programs. Videos also provide a deeper dive.
Earlier this month, Aligned sat down with Corey Mohn, the executive director of the Blue Valley Center for Advanced Professional Studies (CAPS) and CAPS Network, to learn how CAPS is changing the way students and parents value work-based learning.
In layman's terms, what does CAPS do for students?
The idea is we are fast-forwarding students past high school and college and dropping them into what would effectively be their first job by giving them a chance to work on work-based projects.
The program started in 2009 at Blue Valley; what has changed since then?
As we think about where we've come from and what's coming in the future, I think the headline here is the ability to do this across a much broader set of players with more school districts and more business partners engaged. Organizing and facilitating a national network of schools has been rewarding as we continue to see acceleration about leading into career-connected and profession-based learning.
We hear a lot about real-world or project-based learning, but you have described it as profession-based; what's the difference?
We've heard all about problem- and project-based learning and those are a fantastic foundation, but they also tend to be a little more simulated, a little more linear. On the other hand, profession-based takes the project-based learning and puts it on steroids by involving the business partner, the nonprofit, the folks out in the community.
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