Educators in southern Aroostook County are inviting business leaders into schools in an effort to give students career options and help regional businesses build relationships with future workers.
“We want you in our buildings talking about your businesses just like we want our students in your buildings learning from you about what you do,” RSU 29 Superintendent Joe Fagnant told the Southern Aroostook Development Corporation board and other business leaders in Houlton on Wednesday.
Many Maine students do not see career options in the state’s most rural regions, but they do exist, Fagnant said. In fact, statewide initiatives aim to prioritize student-centered learning and teach “real skills for real life” in addition to traditional math and science courses. But the curriculum needs to match the industries available in the area, and the region is already ahead of that curve.
“We cannot be two different silos,” Fagnant said on Wednesday. “We need to create and sustain the community tied into career and technical education pathways. We need to work together. If we don’t we won’t have a future workforce.”
As part of a University of Southern Maine initiative, born out of a four-year study of educators, students, parents and community members from Maine’s 16 counties, the recently convened Maine Citizens’ Assembly on Education Priorities drafted priorities for pre-K through 12th grade.
Two of those priorities are expanding experiential learning by connecting academics to real-life experiences, and learning life skills through hands-on experience with age-appropriate exposure to career options.
RSU 29 is already working on these recommendations, Fagnant said.
For several years, he has been talking with local industries and businesses to understand the needs of the region and communities, he said.
Already, schools are making adjustments, including using purposeful play at Houlton Elementary School, project-based learning with real world experiences at Southside School, and career pathways and exploration at Houlton Middle High School, Fagnant said.
The district started this work in 2025 and its goal is also to expand the Partners In Education program to have more community interaction with guest presenters, learning more about the community through the Shire Mentors initiative, and getting students into the community more, he said.
Community members and business volunteers work with students at Houlton Middle High School through the Shire Mentors, providing mentorship, educational activities, and classroom support.
“RSU 29 educational initiatives match what was decided at the assembly, and it is great to see that we are seeing some validation by an outside group on the work we have already started,” he said.
Additionally, Future Professionals Aroostook, a program with RSU 29 and the development corporation, originated in 2020 after the corporation surveyed local businesses to identify the skills and qualities they were looking for in future employees, said the group’s executive director, Johanna Johnston.
COVID-19 put the program on hold and it resumed in 2023.
The first cohort, now entering 11th grade, has now successfully completed the program, and will graduate from it this fall once school is back in session.
“We launched our second cohort this spring with students from Houlton, Hodgdon, Southern Aroostook Community School and one homeschooled student,” Johnston said.
The program pairs students with local professionals to help them explore careers and develop workplace skills. Mentors come from a variety of industries, including banking, manufacturing, construction, retail, healthcare, education, public service, and other local businesses.
Throughout the program, students participate in mentorship, workplace visits, career exploration, networking opportunities, and professional development activities that help prepare them for the workforce, she said.
For SADC, working closely with the school districts is important because workforce development is one of their core priorities to help businesses grow and to attract new investment.
“We need a strong pipeline of skilled young people who see opportunities to build their futures right here in Southern Aroostook,” Johnston said. “By connecting students with local employers early, we’re helping them understand the variety of careers available while also giving businesses an opportunity to invest in and get to know their future workforce.”
