Brandon, VT—Rutland Northeast Supervisory Union has been selected by Transcend, a national nonprofit that helps communities reimagine and redesign schools so every young person can thrive in a rapidly changing world, to participate in the Rural Career-Connected Collaborative—a 15-month program that launched in January 2026 to support a national cohort of school communities as they lead the way in innovating towards the next chapter of their career-connected learning models in ways that reflect their community’s strengths, aspirations and future trends.

“I am very excited that RNESU is part of the RCCC because it will provide Otter Valley Middle and High School with the benefits of community-wide collaboration that also emphasizes student voice, helping to shape the future and set the tone for how our schools prepare students for college, careers, and life,” says Superintendent Rene Sanchez. “The vision, pathways, and mindsets that Transcend is helping to develop will also benefit all elementary and middle school students across the Rutland Northeast Supervisory Union by helping us tie together our current work in curriculum, belonging, and future-preparedness.”

Otter Valley Tech-Ed Teacher Devon Karpak adds, “This opportunity to work with Transcend further reinforces how forward-thinking of a district RNESU is in putting our students' futures first.”

The Rural Career-Connected Collaborative is grounded in community-based design to designing career-connected learning. Students, families, educators, local employers, and community partners work together to create innovations in career-connected learning that reflect their rich places, the dreams of their young people as well as the demands of an evolving world—no one-size-fits-all blueprint.

Throughout the program, RNESU will explore proven career-connected learning approaches, assess current efforts, engage students and community members in shaping the vision, and develop a continuum of experiences to test and scale over time. 

Rene Sanchez will serve as the “chief architect” of this work and participate in a six-month Superintendent Fellowship designed to build enabling conditions and align policy, people, and resources for lasting impact.

The cohort represents diverse rural communities and was selected from over 110 interested districts. The participating communities are:

These districts range in size and demographics but share a commitment to championing economic mobility and strong learning experiences for every young person. Cohort members will participate in in-person convenings, receive dedicated coaching from Transcend, and build stronger partnerships with industry partners, postsecondary institutions, and community stakeholders.

About Transcend

Transcend is a national nonprofit that helps communities reimagine and redesign schools so every young person can thrive in a rapidly changing world. Across the country, communities recognize that classrooms built for the industrial age no longer prepare learners for what comes next. Schools must be designed for continuous evolution: relevant, resilient, and ready for the future. For more than a decade, Transcend has partnered with school and system leaders to build the capacity for bold, lasting change led by the people who live it every day. We have worked with 600 schools and 160 districts serving 270,000 students in 42 states. Together, we have seen what becomes possible when communities lead redesign with proven methods, insight, and support. From that work, we develop and share tools, research, and models that help schools everywhere make the leap to extraordinary learning for every child, in every community.