6th-8th Career Exploration

National Career Development Month is a month-long campaign that emphasizes the significance of career development and planning. It aims to educate and inspire individuals to explore career options, set goals, and make strategic decisions about their professional futures.

The Michigan Career Development Model (MCDM) is a framework, guided by legislation, that engages school communities, students, and their support networks in intentional and meaningful career awareness, exploration, and preparation for all students.

All students are required to develop an Educational Development Plan (EDP) with guidance from school advisors. EDPs are “living” documents, updated as student interests and abilities become more obvious and focused. All students must be provided the opportunity to develop an EDP during grade 7, and then time to review and revise every year through grade 12. Click here for a link to the EDP Fundamentals Guide.

What you need to know:

• Understanding the Legislation
• Who is required to have an EDP
• The importance of starting early
• What are Talent Portfolios and why are they important
• The Required Elements of the EDP in each grade

A talent portfolio is a vehicle for gathering and recording information that can be used to showcase the diverse skills and talents of the student. It gives the student a competitive advantage by showcasing their technical skills, highlighting career ready practices, and creating a lasting impression to a prospective employer or admissions committee. Michigan legislation gives broad guidance around the specific requirements of the talent portfolio, leaving room for districts to add other criteria and make local decisions about implementation. The law requires that:

• Each student initiate in Grade 7 and revise annually through the student’s EDP

• The Talent Portfolio shall include a record of the student’s experiences, proficiencies, certifications, digital badges, and accomplishments that demonstrate talents or marketable skills.

For students, the To-do list offers an organized view of the work they need to complete, helping them stay focused on their learning journey.

Checkout the Roadmaps below for an overview of the Xello career exploration tasks that students will journey through each year!

7th grade Roadmap of tasks/lessons to complete

8th grade Roadmap of tasks/lessons to complete

• Kickstart to Career is designed to give students an early boost to a great career, to encourage hope, build savings, assist with career training or college expenses, and increase financial education. The program is managed by the Community Foundation for Muskegon County. Students can make withdrawals for any education or training expense after high school.
• Watch this 2 minute Youtube video for an overview of Kickstart to Career.
• KickStart to Career Family Information s'more newsletter linked here for parents/guardians (https://secure.smore.com/n/rjnup)
• Welcome to Xello Family - Xello is the online program your child is using in school to help them prepare for the future. You will receive an email from Xello which will include a link to activate your account within 17 days of receiving it. All you'll need to do to get started is set a password.
• 6th grade KickStart to Career flyer
• 7th grade KickStart to Career flyer

Seventh graders can earn money for their KickStart to Career savings account by using the Xello platform to explore their future.

• $5 for a completed Talent Portfolio: An online "scrapbook" to document their skills, interests, and career ideas.

• $1 for a graduation plan: Creating a plan for after graduation.

• $1 for a future goal: Setting a future goal in Xello.

This is a great opportunity for students to explore career options and save for their future at the same time!

This school year, sixth graders have a few ways to earn $6 for their KickStart to Career (KtC) savings accounts.

All rewards will be deposited into student accounts in May. Families can track the progress of their child's KtC account directly in PowerSchool.

You can send out multiple invites at once with bulk sending.

Filter the Parents and Guardians list before selecting who to send the invites to. The optimal filter to use is Link to Student:

• Filter the list by Invite Not Sent to send all activation emails together.
• Filter by Invite Sent to send a follow-up email to prompt parents/guardians to activate their account or confirm student links. Links do expire after 17 days!
• Filter the list by Linked to view which parents have activated their account and confirmed at least 1 student - there’s no need to send follow-up emails for this status.

Steps to bulk invite parents/guardians:

3. Click Invite Sent and Invite Not Sent

• If you've applied a filter, only the names filtered will be selected.

5. Check the Select all box on the top left

6. Click Send Invite.

• The status in the Link to Student column will update to Processing to indicate that the invites are queued to send. Once they've sent, the status will update.

This fall, career kits are available for classroom use! The Electrical Wiring Kits are designed for up to 30 students, and offers 13 hours of instruction across 3 lessons, teaching essential electrical wiring principles and techniques through real-world, hands-on tasks. This also might be a great after school session for your students! Check out the curriculum here!

The Food Truck Design Kit offers students an interactive, hands-on experience in food service entrepreneurship. These kits allow up to 30 students to design, plan, and visualize their own food truck concepts using interactive tools like gridded whiteboards and furniture tiles. Through up to 18 hours of instruction across 5 lessons, students will develop practical business skills and explore the dynamic world of food truck ownership. Click here for an overview of the lessons.

If you're interested in borrowing either of these kits for a few weeks during the school year, please reach out to Tricia Schuitema, tschuitema@muskegonisd.org, MAISD Career Exploration Specialist, 231-767-3628 - I will deliver them to your school!

Charles Hackley Middle School's Design Thinking classes are completing a project on Manufacturing Careers.

The curriculum integrated career exploration by having students research job details (descriptions, salary, demand) and present their findings, fostering communication and active listening skills. A hands-on industry tour further enhanced the learning, allowing students to meet professionals (e.g., Mechanics, Operators, Engineering Technicians) and observe the real-world application of "Be positive, show up, and work hard."

Muskegon Community College (MCC) is developing hands-on tours designed to spark middle school students' interest in healthcare careers. To reserve your spot and ensure the tours perfectly align with your school’s needs, please complete this enrollment form.

Tour: Nursing + Sim Lab Experience

• Target Audience: Open to 20-30 middle school students per session.

• Core Experience: A meaningful, hands-on experience designed to spark interest in healthcare careers.

• What's Included:

  • Hands-on demos in Nursing and the advanced Simulation Center Lab.

  • Overview of all Health Science programs offered at MCC.

  • Admissions presentation.

  • Optional campus tour (if length of visit allows for one).

• Scheduling: The schedule is flexible and can be customized to your group’s needs, provided the visit works around your school's lunch schedule (i.e., ending before or beginning after your designated lunch period). Registration is on a first-come, first-served basis.

• Available Dates:

• December 15th or December 18th 2025
• May 1st 2026 (Morning only)
• May 5th or May 6th 2026
• Please reach out if you have any questions, tschuitema@muskegonisd.org or sarah.luker@muskegoncc.edu

Discover Manufacturing Week: Oct. 13 - Nov. 25, 2025

Muskegon and West Michigan manufacturers are hosting dynamic, hands-on tours for 6th - 12th grade students! Tours are ≈2 hours and showcase high-skill, high-pay careers, dispelling myths and inspiring students toward manufacturing career opportunities.

To register for a tour, click here.

Access the Educator Toolkit, click here.

Questions? Contact Sasamon Parker at 231.767.3607 or sparker@muskegonisd.org.

Plan an exciting field trip experience for your students at the MCC downtown campus to explore STEAM career pathways and hands-on activities.

Lab Experiences & Activities

• STEM Lab: Focuses on Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math. Students become scientists and engineers, applying the design process to build and program robots, complete engineering challenges, and more.

  • Cost: $5 per student

• Fab Lab: A design and creation space where students use advanced technology, including 3D printers, lasers, and printers, to complete projects.

  • Cost: $10–$15 per student

Click here to get registered. Contact Jessica Sisco with any questions at (231) 777-0629 or jessica.sisco@muskegoncc.edu.

• Howmet Bus Grant available. Select "Yes" on the registration form.

Partner Opportunities

Consider pairing your field trip with a visit to another downtown Muskegon educational partner. Don't forget to include career exploration conversations throughout your visit!

CLICK ON THE LINKS BELOW TO LEARN MORE!

Have questions? Need resources? Please reach out! I am here to support you and your team!

Tricia Schuitema

Career Exploration Specialist, Grades 6-8

Muskegon Area ISD - Muskegon Area CTC

tschuitema@muskegonisd.org

231.767.3628

Schedule a time to meet with me here!

Please forward this newsletter to teachers and staff in your buildings so fellow educators can "subscribe" to get monthly career exploration newsletter updates!