Northwest Arkansas continues to strengthen the connection between education and careers, and the region’s students are getting more chances to explore high-demand fields before they ever leave high school.

On June 9, John Brown University announced a set of new programs designed to expand access to career-connected learning for high school students across the region. Backed by new funding from the Walton Family Foundation, the effort will expand equitable access to computer science programs and grow JBU’s residential Summer Academy into additional high-demand career fields. Both initiatives prioritize students from low-income backgrounds in rural and smaller school districts across Benton and Washington counties.

“Northwest Arkansas is experiencing tremendous economic growth, but not all students have equal access to the pathways that lead to high-demand careers,” said Ted Song, chief innovation officer at JBU. “JBU continues to expand as a regional connector, partnering with school districts to remove barriers to computer science education and career exploration, so that all high school students in Northwest Arkansas have an opportunity to thrive in our region’s workforce.”

Building on nearly a decade of summer programming, the expanded Summer Academy will give high school sophomores through seniors the chance to explore fields such as health care, engineering, criminal justice, construction, sports medicine and business operations. JBU is also launching a 9th Grade Career Explorer Day, allowing younger students to sample multiple pathways before committing to a residential track later on. Need-based scholarships, offered on an income-based sliding scale, are designed to keep the experience within reach for the families who stand to benefit most.

That emphasis on early, hands-on exposure reflects a simple idea gaining traction across the region. Students engage more deeply when they can see a clear line between what they are learning and where it could lead.

JBU’s announcement comes at a moment when Northwest Arkansas leaders are increasingly focused on building a more connected talent pipeline. In May, the Walton Family Foundation launched its Home Region Strategy 2030, a five-year roadmap that names strengthening education and workforce readiness, including expanded career-connected learning, among its core priorities for the region.

The common thread across these efforts is coordination. Workforce shortages are addressed when school districts, colleges, employers and training providers work toward a shared strategy. That is the idea behind the Northwest Arkansas Council’s newest initiative. On June 10, the Council named David Giesige founding executive director of a new regional workforce intermediary, an effort incubated by the Council with support from the Walton Family Foundation to align employers, educators and community partners around the region’s workforce needs.

The intermediary will serve as a regional hub connecting education, training and employment, with a focus on expanding internships, apprenticeships and other work-based learning opportunities from early education through young adulthood. The need is significant.

This need is significant. Northwest Arkansas is expected to see 50,000 added jobs in the coming years ahead, while employers increasingly demand education beyond high school. Demand remains particularly strong in STEM-related fields, including health care, eningeeering, technology and data analytics. According to the Northwest Arkansas Council’s 2026 Health Care + AI Workforce Readiness Plan, health care employment in the region has grown 41.8% over the past decade, adding more than 10,000 jobs and reaching over 35,000 professionals. Projections estimate more than 7,400 additional jobs over the next 10 years. Programs that introduce students to these fields early help ensure the region can meet that need from within.

Early exploration is one piece of a broader continuum taking shape across Northwest Arkansas. For adults looking to change course, programs such as Upskill NWA cover tuition, books, fees and licensing exam costs while pairing participants with a career navigator to guide them into health care careers. And through CareersNWA, the Northwest Arkansas Council connects students, job seekers and career changers to the employers, mentors and training opportunities that turn interest into employment.

With new pathways for students and a new effort to align them, Northwest Arkansas is working to make sure opportunity is within reach earlier than ever.