What We Do
Connected Lane County was established in 2014 as Lane County’s regional achievement collaborative by early childhood partners, local school districts, institutions of higher education, the local workforce board, and industry innovators. Today, we are an independent nonprofit serving over 2000 youth each year.
Our core programs include Elevate, which creates career-connected learning opportunities for youth; Navigate, which offers a variety of case management services to youth facing significant barriers to success; and Spark, which brings community, education, & industry together through innovation, education, and hands-on learning.
Our Mission
We equip Lane County youth with the tools to help them gain confidence in their abilities and see value in their decisions. We break down barriers, build bridges, and create strategic partnerships to connect youth with education and employment pathways to transform their future potential.
Our Vision
We create opportunities to increase the relevance for each learner to connect to their lives beyond graduation, and intentionally connect partners to meet the needs of youth in Lane County.
Our Equity Stance
At Connected Lane County, we are committed to creating a safe and equitable learning environment for all youth. Youth in our programs represent a wide variety of backgrounds and identities including racial, ethnic, linguistic, diverse ability, neurodiversity, sexual identity, religious, socioeconomic, housing, and family status. We want every youth that participates in our programs to experience a sense of belonging. We:
- Believe communities’ histories, values, and practices contribute to diverse and equitable approaches to solving problems.
- Intentionally and explicitly identify and recruit historically underserved and/or underrepresented participants.
- Recognize the importance of utilizing curriculum and approaches that are culturally relevant and responsive to the communities being served.
Our Impact
Our Work
We partnered with Dialogues in Action starting in 2019 to analyze our impact on the Lane County community, spending months compiling data and interviewing Elevate participants. It’s a comprehensive look at how Connected Lane County has influenced our community.
Join Our Newsletter
Every month, we’ll send you updates about events, job opportunities for students, and ways you can partner with us.
