Pathways to Meaningful Employment
Unlock career pathways for justice-impacted students. Join us at our dynamic symposium—where industry experts and thought leaders converge to share actionable insights and forge powerful partnerships that uplift justice-impacted students.
Symposium: Connecting Justice-Impacted Students to Industry and Meaningful Employment
Pathways to Meaningful Work Symposium: Expanding Education-to-Employment Opportunities for Justice-Impacted Individuals
The Pathways to Meaningful Work Symposium brings together educators, workforce leaders, corrections professionals, and community partners to strengthen education-to-employment pipelines for justice-impacted individuals. Through keynote sessions, guided discussions, and collaborative working groups, the symposium explores national models and local strategies to improve reentry outcomes and promote public safety through meaningful career opportunities. This symposium is made possible though a generous grant from the Mellon Foundation. June 25, 2025 | 8:15-5:15 pm Contact: Janet T. Davidson, Ph.D. | [email protected] OR [email protected] | 808-739-7469
Join us: June 25, 2025 | 8:15-5:15 pm
Agenda
Registration and Networking Breakfast
8:15-9:00 am
Registration and light breakfast as well as informal networking with peers and partners.
Welcome and Opening Remarks
9:15-9:30 am
Framing the day’s purpose: the role of education, reentry support, and cross-sector collaboration in promoting public safety and individual success.
Plenary Session - Good Jobs: Filling the Skills Gap
9:15-10:00 am
Access to quality employment is a critical—but often overlooked—component of successful reentry and long-term stability. This session explores national trends and frameworks that highlight the role of cross-sector collaboration in building meaningful employment pathways for justice-involved individuals.
From Classrooms to Careers
10:00-11:00 am
A dialogue exploring how educational programming inside correctional facilities can better align with employment opportunities on the outside—and where industry partners see gaps and opportunities in Hawai‘i.
Plenary: Advancing Pathways from Education to Employment
11:15-12:30 pm
National perspectives on promising models that connect incarcerated students with internships and employment opportunities, creating seamless transitions from education to work.
Aligning Systems - From Insights to Action
1:45-2:45 pm
This working session invites members of industry community partners to explore how Hawai‘i’s workforce systems can support stronger education-to-employment and internship pipelines for justice-involved individuals. Through small group dialogue, participants will identify barriers, share promising practices, and surface actionable next steps.
Spotlight Session: Lessons from Kansas
3:15-4:15 pm
A focused session on how the Kansas Department of Corrections has built stronger education-to-employment transitions—and what Hawai‘i can learn from their approach.
Cross-Sector Collaboration
4:15-5:00 pm
A forward-looking session to reflect on the day’s themes and outline collective commitments. Participants will be asked to consider:
1. What commitments can we make to help improve outcomes for justice-involved students?
2. A year from now, how could our work be more seamless—and what three actions would get us there?
Closing Remarks
5:00-5:15 pm
Let's Work Together to Move the Conversation Forward!
Together we can leverage the transformative power of prison education programs to create careers for justice impacted students. Join our symposium to help enhance connections between education and meaningful employment for justice impacted students.