Pointing at the Map or Making the Reservation? From Graduation Requirements to Real-World Plans

Sep 5

Key Takeaways

Chicago Public Schools adopted a requirement in 2017 that students provide evidence of a postsecondary plan before graduating.
Kansas took an important step in 2022 by requiring students, beginning with the Class of 2028, to complete at least two postsecondary-readiness assets.
Kansas asks students to point to a destination on the map. Chicago asks them to make the reservation.
Kansas could strengthen its existing approach by asking students, parents and schools to develop—and act upon—a documented plan for what comes after graduation.

Why It Matters

Imagine planning a trip.

One person identifies the destination, studies the route and makes sure the car is ready. Another goes one step further and makes the reservation.

That is roughly the difference between the new Kansas high-school graduation requirements and the policy adopted by Chicago Public Schools.

Kansas asks students to demonstrate that they have prepared for life after high school. Chicago also asks them to provide evidence of what they actually plan to do next.

Both approaches represent progress beyond the traditional assumption that a school’s responsibility ends once a student completes the required courses. But Chicago’s policy requires a greater degree of commitment from students and their families.

Chicago’s Documented-Plan Requirement

In 2017, Chicago Public Schools adopted a policy called Learn.Plan.Succeed. Under that policy, students must provide evidence of a postsecondary plan before receiving a diploma.

College is only one option. Chicago recognizes six pathways:

College
Military service
Employment
Job training
Apprenticeship
An approved service or gap-year program

Depending on the pathway, a student might submit a college acceptance letter, employment offer, military application, enlistment document or evidence of an application to a training or apprenticeship program.

The policy does not demand that an 18-year-old determine the course of an entire life. Plans change. Opportunities arise, interests evolve and setbacks occur.

Chicago simply requires the student to move beyond a vague intention and take a documented step toward a destination.

In other words, the student must make a reservation—even if the itinerary eventually changes.

Kansas Has Already Taken an Important Step

Kansas has since moved in the same general direction.

In 2022, the Kansas State Board of Education approved new graduation requirements that take effect with the Class of 2028. In addition to completing required coursework, students must earn at least two approved “postsecondary assets” aligned with their Individual Plan of Study.

Those assets can include:

College credit earned during high school
A qualifying ACT, SAT, WorkKeys or state-assessment score
An industry-recognized credential
An apprenticeship or work-based learning experience
Community service
Participation in school activities
JROTC
A senior project or exit interview
Strong attendance
Certain scouting or 4-H achievements

Kansas deserves credit for recognizing that a diploma should represent more than accumulated classroom credits. Academic achievement, workplace experience, service, leadership and technical credentials can all help prepare a young person for adulthood.

This is a meaningful step in the right direction.

But the Kansas and Chicago policies ask different questions.

Kansas asks:

Have you completed meaningful activities or achievements that demonstrate readiness?

Chicago also asks:

What do you actually plan to do after graduation, and what evidence shows that you have acted on that plan?

Kansas helps students identify a destination and prepare for the journey. Chicago requires them to take the additional step of making the reservation.

From Preparation to Commitment

Kansas could build upon its new requirements by asking each student to document one intended pathway before graduation.

That documentation might include:

A college or technical-school acceptance
An apprenticeship or job-training application
A military application or enlistment document
An employment offer
Confirmation that an existing job will continue
Acceptance into an approved service or gap-year program
Another realistic plan approved by the local school district

This would not guarantee that every plan succeeds. A college acceptance does not ensure enrollment, and a job offer does not establish a lifelong career.

It would, however, demonstrate commitment. The student would have considered the available options, selected a direction and taken at least one concrete step toward it.

A reservation can be changed. What matters is that someone has decided to begin the journey.

Parents Have a Role, Too

Schools have an important responsibility to prepare students for life after graduation. Counselors can explain options, assist with applications, connect students with employers and help families navigate financial aid and training programs.

But schools cannot—and should not—carry the entire responsibility.

Parents and guardians have a vital role in helping young people think seriously about their futures. That does not mean choosing a career for their children or insisting that every student attend a four-year university. It means being present for the conversation and helping transform a general aspiration into a practical plan.

Parents can ask:

What interests and abilities does my child have?
What education or training does that pathway require?
What will it cost, and how will we pay for it?
Which applications must be completed?
What deadlines are approaching?
What is the alternative if the first plan does not work?

Many parents are already deeply involved in these decisions and deserve recognition for the time, encouragement and guidance they provide.

Others may feel poorly equipped to navigate college admissions, apprenticeships, financial aid, technical credentials or a rapidly changing employment market. That is why the process should be collaborative rather than accusatory.

Schools can provide information and expertise. Parents provide knowledge of the student, encouragement and sustained involvement. Students must make choices and complete the necessary work.

A documented postsecondary plan could include a conference or written acknowledgment involving the student, a parent or guardian when available, and a school counselor or adviser.

The purpose would not be to assign blame. It would be to establish a shared expectation:

Preparing a young person for adulthood is a partnership among the student, the family and the school.

Parents should be acknowledged for the guidance they already provide—and challenged to remain actively engaged through the transition out of high school.

Avoiding an Unfair Mandate

Any new requirement would need reasonable flexibility.

Students living in rural communities may have limited access to employers and apprenticeships. Some young people have disabilities, family responsibilities or other circumstances that affect their options. Not every student has an available or involved parent.

Kansas should provide alternative processes for those situations. No student should lose a diploma merely because a parent failed to participate or because an opportunity was unavailable locally.

The state must also ensure that schools have the resources necessary to provide meaningful counseling. A documented-plan requirement should not become another form uploaded at the last minute simply to satisfy a bureaucratic rule.

The standard should be serious but reasonable:

Every student should identify a realistic next step and provide evidence of action toward it, with schools and families expected to help make that possible.

My Perspective

Chicago pioneered its documented-plan requirement in 2017. Kansas took its own important step five years later by making postsecondary assets part of graduation.

Kansas should now consider completing that work.

Our state already asks whether students have developed experiences and abilities associated with postsecondary readiness. The next question is whether they have converted that preparation into an actual plan.

That plan may change. It may encounter setbacks. It may ultimately lead somewhere entirely unexpected. But a thoughtful plan provides a better beginning than drifting into the months after graduation without direction.

A high-school diploma should celebrate what a student has accomplished. It should also mark a deliberate transition into what comes next.

Students must take responsibility for that transition. Schools must help them navigate it. Parents should be present, encouraging and appropriately challenging throughout the process.

Kansas is helping students point to a destination on the map. The next step is helping them make the reservation.

Further Reading: Kansas graduation requirements⁠, Kansas Individual Plan of Study⁠, Chicago’s Learn.Plan.Succeed requirements⁠, and Chicago Public Schools graduation policy⁠.

Paul Wilson