Last month, Carrie Lively, Executive Director of The Pursuit Institute, presented at The Apprenticeship Degree Network Conference at Oxford University in England. Lively was was one of a few hand-selected individuals from across the US who are pioneering this type of work to participate in the conference. Here are some key takeaways Lively shared.

·      The Pursuit Institute and Ball State University are recognized leaders in developing Teacher Apprenticeship programs. Programs like the TPI Education Professions program have gained international recognition as a viable method for addressing the teacher shortage in Indiana and nationwide.

·      Executive Director Carrie Lively has been recognized as a national leader in braiding federal, state, and local funding streams to make post-secondary education programs accessible for students.

·      A Degree Apprenticeship is the future of our workforce. This is the deliberate intersection of formal education combined with on-the-job learning. This creates an opportunity for students to not only learn the pedagogical aspects of their future careers but also gives them ample opportunities to apply what they are learning in a real-life environment.

·      Degree Apprenticeships focus on keeping the employer central to the design and development of the training experience, and the formal education is connected and relative to the student’s career. The Pursuit Institute developed Indiana’s first Registered Degree Apprenticeship for Elementary Education. In 2023, TPI will also add a Registered Degree Apprenticeship in Early Childhood Education.

·      Executive Director Carrie Lively is researching the feasibility of adding a Degree Apprenticeship for Nursing, and she hopes to add this program to the TPI curriculum for Hamilton County students.