As Indiana prepares to roll out sweeping changes to its high school diploma requirements, Greater Lafayette Commerce (GLC) is already ahead of the curve. Its Career+ Pathways initiative has been delivering the kind of career-connected learning experiences the state will soon require, giving more than 12,200 students across the region an early peek at what the future of education looks like.
In December 2024, the Indiana State Board of Education approved a streamlined graduation framework: a base diploma plus personalized “readiness seals” tied to students’ post-graduation goals. These new requirements will become mandatory for the Class of 2029 (incoming freshman), but schools are encouraged to begin adopting them as soon as the 2025–26 school year.
“In K-12 education, we have an incredible opportunity to help every student find their purpose, know their value and understand the possibilities for their life’s path,” said Dr. Katie Jenner, Indiana Secretary of Education. “This means providing students with opportunities to develop skills, experience work-based learning and earn a credential of value before ever graduating high school. As we continue implementation of the new Indiana diploma, a number of communities have raised their hands to be early adopters. By bringing together students and families, higher education, business/industry and other local stakeholders, these communities are providing a model of what is possible when we work together for our students and communities.”
The program, created in partnership with Career+ Pathways by Skyepack, builds from elementary school through high school, layering skills and experiences along the way. Starting as early as kindergarten, students take part in GLC workforce programs such as Robotics in Manufacturing Camp and Manufacturing Week, sparking early curiosity about careers. By middle school, those experiences expand into structured career exploration, and in eighth grade, students complete career interest assessments to build a personalized high school plan. In ninth and tenth grades, they stack micro-credentials in areas such as Workplace Communication, rotate through career exploration opportunities and sharpen their academic focus.
It’s already showing results. During the 2024–25 school year, Career+ partnered with more than 100 employers, as well as Ivy Tech and Purdue University, to provide nearly 60,000 career-connected learning sessions. Students enrolled in more than 6,000 micro credentials and logged upwards of 7,000 hours of work-based learning. A total of 186 students used Career+ as a Locally Created Pathway to meet graduation requirements — a model that mirrors the state’s new diploma design years before it becomes mandatory.
