This year at SXSW EDU, one message came through loud and clear: the future is career connected.

For the past five years, Catalyze has supported innovators across the country working to connect learning with opportunity. At SXSW EDU 2026, we were excited to bring that community together in Austin — sharing lessons, sparking new partnerships, and learning alongside educators, employers, and practitioners building the future of career-connected learning (CCL).

Across two public sessions and private events with our national grantee community, one theme kept resurfacing: this work is bigger than any one organization. Career-connected learning is advancing because practitioners, employers, funders, and policymakers are working together to rethink how young people explore their futures.

Catalyzing Connections Across the Field

On Wednesday, we hosted two public events: a meet-up (Catalyzing Connections in Career-Connected Learning) and a workshop (The Future of Education is Career-Connected). Both were designed to showcase the incredible work of our grantee community while helping attendees better understand what career-connected learning looks like in practice,what it takes to build these systems, and how to get started.

Across our events, more than 100 educators, employers, and workforce leaders were eager to connect with Catalyze grantees. More than a dozen Catalyze organizations hosted tables, sharing how they are building career-connected learning ecosystems in communities across the country. Conversations ranged from career exploration and advising to employer partnerships and systems change.

We also invited attendees to participate in a reflection activity, writing postcards about their hopes for the next five years of career-connected learning. The responses reflected both excitement and commitment: warm wishes for the field, renewed energy for collaboration, and a shared determination to continue advancing CCL together. (Stay tuned as we continue to roll out insights and aspirations from the postcards throughout the year!)

Later that day, a full house joined us for “The Future of Education is Career-Connected,” an interactive session featuring Catalyze grantees leading mini-workshops on key components of strong CCL systems and the first steps to implementation.

Grantees shared insights on three core areas: wraparound supports, career exploration, and employer engagement. We spotlighted three grantees– Hopeworks, Project Success, and the Greater Phoenix Chamber Foundation. Across the conversation, one theme surfaced repeatedly: career exploration needs to start earlier.

“One of the things I value most about Catalyze is that we’re learning alongside our grantees. Seeing the creativity, commitment, and collaboration across this community reminds me how much momentum there is behind building stronger career-connected systems for young people.”

— Michelle Cheang, Catalyze Director

Grantees in attendance as well as event participants shared that by the time students reach high school, many already feel they’ve decided what’s possible for them. Increasingly, schools are introducing career awareness and exploration as early as elementary and middle school to expand those possibilities.

Conversations also emphasized the importance of strong cross-sector partnerships. Career-connected learning works best when educators, employers, workforce leaders, and community organizations design experiences together, creating pathways that help young people explore interests, build skills, and imagine their future.

Lastly, attendees and presenters spoke about the growing number of employers stepping forward as partners in education. What once felt like a “nice to have” is increasingly becoming a core strategy for developing future talent.

Learning Together

Throughout SXSW EDU, Catalyze grantees shared how CCL is taking shape in different communities: from rural regions building local mentorship networks to organizations partnering with employers to create sustainable work-based learning opportunities.

Across contexts, the message was consistent: no one is doing this work alone. The scale of the challenge requires collaboration, shared learning, and sustained commitment from partners across sectors.

Five years into Catalyze, it’s clear that career-connected learning is gaining momentum nationally. And just as importantly, a growing community of practitioners is working together to shape what comes next.