The School Committee voted unanimously to approve the first reading of policy JBCF, the district’s Career/Technical Pathway Exploration policy, after staff said the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) requires districts to submit this policy for approval.

"Unlike many of our policies, DESE is actually requiring us to submit this to them for their approval," Dr. Daley said during the presentation of the proposed language. District staff noted the policy follows the DESE model template closely and includes required elements such as a career exploration platform and procedures for site visits and collaboration with regional vocational-technical schools.

Committee members discussed whether to refer to specific electronic platforms by name in the policy text; administrators said DESE’s language is specific and the district followed the template to ensure the submission will be accepted. Staff requested and received permission to submit the required attestation through the DESE portal and — with an approved extension — to complete the second reading at the committee’s next meeting.

The committee approved the first reading by unanimous voice vote (4–0). The district will finalize the attestation and submit the policy to DESE for review.