A journey across continents and toward purpose
When you meet Phil Jago, you might first notice his accent, a lingering trace of his upbringing in the United Kingdom, or his dry sense of humor. But what sticks most is his presence: calm, grounded, and deeply committed to helping students chart a future they can believe in.
If you ask him to describe his job, you might get a list that spans nearly every part of the School District of Lancaster. Coordinator of College & Career Services. Supervisor of the Future Ready team. Liaison to higher ed, employers, and training partners. Strategy-builder. Systems-thinker. Listener. But beneath all those roles is a simple throughline: Phil is, at his core, a helper.
That identity didn’t begin in a classroom. Like many of the students he now guides, he once felt unsure of what came next. It started in a household where he helped raise younger siblings, growing up in the UK with parents who faced health challenges. The weight of responsibility came early, and with it, a skill for reading people, supporting quietly, and stepping up when needed.
His journey to SDoL was anything but conventional. Phil left his first university experience after six months, unsure of what he wanted to do. After a stint in customer service, he reevaluated his path. What kept surfacing was his ability to connect with others and his desire to make things better for them.
He returned to university for elementary education with a specialization in Spanish, taught in England, then in Costa Rica, where he met his wife, Justine. A move to Millersville followed, along with a master’s degree and his first role with the district as a paraprofessional. Within weeks, he moved into college and career work through the GEAR UP program, and he’s never looked back.
Building a culture of readiness, not just a checklist
Today, Phil Jago serves as the district’s Coordinator of College & Career Services and leads the Future Ready team, a small but impactful group dedicated to ensuring every student leaves high school with a meaningful postsecondary plan.
Phil is quick to point out that the team’s mission isn’t just about getting students into college. “It’s about getting students ready for whatever is next,” he says. “That might be a two-year program, an apprenticeship, a short-term training course, or a job that pays family-sustaining wages.
We want students to understand that there are many ways to build a fulfilling future.”
The Future Ready team operates across McCaskey High School, Phoenix Academy, and beyond. In a given week, Phil might be supporting staff, coaching AmeriCorps team members, analyzing postsecondary data, working with elementary and middle school counselors, meeting with local employers, or presenting at district-wide events. “College and career is a thread that runs through everything we do,” he says. “In a way, every staff member at SDoL is part of the Future Ready mission.”
Phil’s leadership is focused on expanding access, not just programming. One example: this year, he placed an AmeriCorps team member full-time at Phoenix Academy to better support students who often face higher barriers to postsecondary success. The result? More seniors than ever at Phoenix are making plans beyond high school.
Phil also helped launch a pre-apprenticeship program in manufacturing, one of Lancaster County’s most in-demand sectors, connecting students directly with workforce-ready skills and local job opportunities.
Listening first, guiding second
What makes Phil’s approach so impactful is his insistence on starting with connection. “We don’t begin by pushing a checklist,” he says. “We begin by listening.”
Students walk into the Future Ready Center with questions that are sometimes unclear, or fears they haven’t named aloud. Phil trains his team to notice not just what students say, but how they say it. “Sometimes the real story is in the way they talk about a class, or who they look up to. It’s in what lights them up without them even realizing.”
The team uses career assessments, interest inventories, and the Xello platform to identify options. But the tools are only part of the equation. “You have to be skilled enough to read between the lines,” he says. “It’s about figuring out what matters to them and why, and then helping them take a step in that direction.”
Moments that stay with you
Some student stories never leave you. Phil still remembers one of the first students he ever advised at SDoL: Aniel Santos, Class of 2018. Aniel wanted to become a pilot, an ambitious, expensive dream. He enrolled at Lehigh Carbon Community College, which partners with the Allentown Airport on an aviation program. There was no housing, so he figured it out. The program had additional fees, so he worked as much as he could. Eight years later, his mother, an SDoL food service worker, sent Phil a photo of her son in his commercial pilot uniform, standing at Chicago O’Hare.
“I cried when I saw it,” Phil says. “Because I remember that conversation. I remember how uncertain it all felt. And then there he was, doing the thing he set out to do.”
Other students have left different impressions. Phil recalls working with a student who had recently arrived in the U.S., was experiencing homelessness, and spoke limited English. Together with the Future Ready team, they found a pathway to Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology, a school that provided housing, a full scholarship, and a path forward. “That student had every reason to give up. But they didn’t.”
Phil also names students who now attend elite institutions like Harvard and Temple’s Japan campus as proof that even the most high-achieving
students can benefit from a sounding board. “They may not need us to fill out their applications,” he says, “but they need someone to process it all with, to say, ‘Here’s what I’m thinking, does this make sense?’ That matters.”
A message to families and the community
Phil urges families to think beyond the stereotype of the college counselor. “We’re not just taking kids on college trips,” he says. “We’re helping them think about their values, their goals, and their skills in real-world ways.” He emphasizes that Future Ready serves all students, not just high achievers. “Postsecondary advising is for the students who are unsure, the students who are overwhelmed, and the students who think they’ve got it figured out. We meet them where they are.”
And to the community? “Come to our events. Talk to your kids about careers. Share the supports we offer. If you know a student who graduated and is still figuring it out, send them back to us. We’ll help however we can.”
Looking ahead
Phil’s vision for the Future Ready program is both strategic and deeply personal. Although college access remains a focus for the team at the high school level, he wants to see more career-aligned programming, more short-term credentials, and more training that leads directly to employment. He also wants to see teachers trained as future-ready mentors, leveraging their daily relationships with students to embed career conversations into the classroom.
As the economy shifts, Phil keeps learning. He attends national conferences, participates in local workgroups like Career Ready Lancaster, and regularly updates staff on emerging trends. “Our students will enter a job market that’s changing fast,” he says. “They need tools, not just plans.”
Advice for the unsure
When asked what he would say to a student who’s uncertain about their future, Phil leans forward. “Test-drive your ideas. Try something. And if it doesn’t feel right, come back. We’ll help you reflect and try again. There’s no shame in adjusting your path. What matters is that you keep moving toward something that feels like a fit.”
Lancaster as home
After nearly a decade in the district, Phil says Lancaster has become home. “This is the longest I’ve worked anywhere in my life. And I’ve never worked with people who care this deeply.” In Phil’s world, students are more than their grades or test scores. They are thinkers, dreamers, helpers, caregivers, and builders. And every single one deserves the support to figure out what comes next.
“It’s a privilege to walk beside students during this part of their journey,” he says. “Not to choose for them. Just to make sure they know the doors are there and they have what it takes to walk through.”
And that’s what makes Phil Jago’s work matter. It’s not just about planning futures, it’s about showing students that they have one.
#
For more information about the Future Ready Center, click here.