Bringing a Graduate Profile to Life: A Blueprint

Lacking a statewide definition of student success, an increasing number of California school districts are taking it upon themselves to engage community stakeholders to create a Graduate Profile (or Portrait of a Graduate). Often, districts feel compelled to do so because they believe that, while the Common Core Standards, Next Generation Science Standards, and the associated assessments build a necessary foundation for college and career readiness, the academic core, in and of itself, is not sufficient to holistically and equitably prepare all young people for future success.

This blueprint is intended for educational leaders and their community counterparts who assume shared responsibility for shifting education so that it is more equitable and better aligned with the skills, competencies, and mindsets that the community values as the emerging needs of our young people and larger society. This blueprint is intended to offer a menu of the interdependent “parts and pieces” critical to actualize a Graduate Profile.