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Hello everyone! My name is Jodie Smith and I am the new Education Program Consultant for WBL and IRCs!
My background is in Higher Education where I most recently worked for Central College as the Director of Career Development for two years. Prior to that, I worked at Iowa Western Community College, first as an academic advisor but then as the Director of the TRIO/SSS program there for 5 years.
I joined the Department a little over a month ago and am excited to meet and begin working with everyone!
There are also have been a few other changes to the team.
- Erica Woods-Schmitz, who was the Education Program Consultant for Career and Academic Planning, has left the department. We would like to thank her for all of her wonderful work and wish her well on her future endeavors!
- Shelly Duwa joined the Department as the Education Program Consultant for Business Education and CTSOs.
- Michelle Meier is now with the STEM Bureau but will still be overseeing Information Solutions
CTE Team:
Are you interested in an exciting career at the Iowa Department of Education? If so, you're in luck! We are hiring for two positions: CTE and Postsecondary Readiness Bureau Chief and Education Program Consultant (EPC) for Career and Academic Planning. The Bureau Chief position closes on October 9th and the EPC for Career and Academic Planning position closes on October 5th.
Contact Amy Gieseke at amy.gieseke@iowa.gov with any questions about the positions.
Last year, the Department released a technical assistance document to assist school districts with the coding and reporting of WBL experiences. The document was recently updated to reflect some changes that have taken place for the 2025-2026 school year:
- There is now an individual-level indicator for work-based learning. These codes can be used to "catch" those students who are participating in a WBL experience not tied to a course (e.g., summer internships)
- The embedded indicator codes have changed slightly. The "Apprenticeship" category was split into "Registered Apprenticeships" and "Unregistered Apprenticeships."
The latest version of the document can be found at the Department's Career-Connected Learning website.
For questions regarding the coding and reporting of work-based learning, please reach out to Jodie Smith at jodie.smith@iowa.gov or Heather Meissen at heather.meissen@iowa.gov.
We are actively working on updating each technical assistance document on the Career-Connected Learning webpage to reflect the updated definition of WBL with the passage of Senate File 2411.
These updates will be posted to the Career-Connected Learning webpage soon in addition to new technical assistance related to WBL.
Is there a resource you would like created to help with WBL or IRCs? Contact Jodie Smith at jodie.smith@iowa.gov to make your suggestion.
After a successful webinar series last year, Iowa Workforce Development and the Iowa Department of Education are continuing the WBL webinar series for the 2025-2026 school year. This year's webinar series will focus on new topics and highlight what's possible in Iowa's Workforce.
October 7, 2025: Growing Employer High School Partnership Internship Programs
- 3:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m. Register Here
- Hear from employers across Iowa about how the built their high school internship programs, the advantages of starting early to prepare the future workforce, and what they need from educations to sustain a successful work-based learning partnership.
November 4, 2025: Work-Based Learning: A Key Strategy to Address Iowa's Healthcare Workforce Shortage
- 3:30 p.m. - 4:30 pm Register Here
- Find out more about healthcare labor market information and scalable work-based learning examples from employers and educators who are helping Iowans explore rewarding healthcare careers while building talent pipelines for employers.
February 10, 2026: Preparing Student-Learners for Construction and Advanced Manufacturing Careers
- 3:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m. Register Here
- A student-learner program is a type of work-based learning experience with potential to train 16- and 17-year-olds for careers in industries like construction and advanced manufacturing. Learn about the components that comprise a student-learner program
March 10, 2026: Incorporating Industry-Recognized Credentials into Work-Based Learning
- 3:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m. Register Here
- Work-based learning provides opportunities for high schools and community colleges to integrate industry-recognized credentials (IRCs) into courses and programs. Learn about which types of work-based learning are best suited for alignment with IRCs and how to integrate these credentials into existing and new work-based learning programs.
Not able to attend a webinar? Webinars are recorded and posted to the Iowa Workforce and Iowa Department of Education websites for later viewing. Click the button below for a list of recordings!
Career Exploration in Grades 5 and 6
During this past legislative session, the governor signed House File (HF) 316. This bill expands career exploration to grades 5 and 6 to ensure that students are prepared to develop and implement well-informed ICAPs in 8th grade. It also requires that career exploration curriculum includes career investigation, career connections, and career intentions. The Department has developed a resource to assist districts in the implementation of career exploration in grades 5 and 6 and this resource can be found at the Department's Career and Academic Planning Webpage.
For additional questions about career exploration in the middle grades, contact Heather Meissen at heather.meissen@iowa.gov.
Industry-Recognized Credential (IRC) Seal
HF 316 also requires that the Department develop and distribute to school districts a seal aligned to a Department-approved list of IRCs to be affixed to high school transcripts or certificates. Additionally, school districts will be required to recognize high school graduates who, prior to graduation, have attained an IRC aligned to the student's CTE program of study and is on the approved list. Guidelines related to the implementation of the IRC seal, along with digital images of the IRC seals, can be found on the Department's Industry-Recognized Credential webpage.
For additional questions about the IRC seal, please reach out to Jodie Smith at jodie.smith@iowa.gov.
The STEM BEST (Businesses Engaging Students and Teachers) Program focuses on teachers and industry professionals working side-by-side to craft curriculum and projects that prepare students for exciting STEM careers local to their community in manufacturing, information technology, bioscience (agriculture and medicine), finance, and more.
The application period for the 2026-2027 STEM BEST Award is now open and the deadline for applications is November 10, 2025. Both returning schools and new schools can apply.
More information can be found on the Department of Education's STEM BEST webpage.
Do you have students interested in science research? If so, Des Moines University (DMU) Medicine and Health Sciences is inviting students to submit abstracts for the Young Scientist Program. This in-person event on November 15th celebrates scientific discovery and innovation across disciplines, providing an exciting opportunity to:
- Present original research in a professional setting
- Network with faculty, researchers and peers
- Gain feedback from a broad scientific audience
Young Scientists Abstracts must be submitted as:
- STEM Research (High School Students Only)
- Science
- Technology
- Engineering
- Mathematics
For more information, please contact research@dmu.edu.
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What a whirlwind start of the year it has been! We are all in the trenches of this work and what better way to have the dust settle a bit than to come together?!
We are hosting our first connections group on September 30th, at 3:30-4:00.
Not signed up on our email list? Reach out to iowawbl@gmail.com and we would love to put you on our list!
Keep doing great things because it is hard work, but we don't have to do it alone!
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The Clearinghouse for Work-Based Learning (WBL) webpage is currently offline as the Department of Education is working on making updates to the webpage. We hope to have the webpage available to educators and employers soon with added enhancements. More to come on this in the coming weeks!
District or school staff who have questions about creating or finding WBL opportunities should contact Jodie Smith at jodie.smith@iowa.gov.
Employers who are interested in partnering with school districts on WBL opportunities should contact Iowa Workforce Development.
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The interactive work-based learning dashboard available on the Iowa Student Outcomes website provides an opportunity to review what is being offered across the state for WBL.
District or school staff should check the updated information and conduct a thorough review of all identified courses, as well as any that may be missing or seemingly incorrect due to coding or reporting issues. A feedback form has been added to the site to request corrections, clarifications or other information.
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Jodie Smith
Education Program Consultant - WBL and IRCs
Bureau of CTE and Postsecondary Readiness
Division of Higher Education
Iowa Department of Education
515-419-5190
jodie.smith@iowa.gov
Heather Meissen
Administrative Consultant - CTE and Health Sciences
Bureau of CTE and Postsecondary Readiness
Division of Higher Education
Iowa Department of Education
515-326-5378
heather.meissen@iowa.gov
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