Member Spotlight: Colin Peters, Saint Paul Public Schools
When I sat down to talk with one of our members, Colin Peters, one thing was very clear: his belief in students.
As the Work-Based Learning Coordinator for Saint Paul Public Schools (SPPS), Colin currently works with students to connect them with internships, job placements, and career exploration opportunities that allow them to see their own potential in action. While he recently joined MinnesotaCAN, his career has already taken him across multiple corners of Minnesota's college access and career readiness landscape.
In many ways, Colin represents the connective thread that runs through MinnesotaCAN's membership. Having worked with several of the community-based organizations, schools, and programs that support Minnesota students on their paths to college and careers, he brings a unique perspective on the importance of collaboration across the field.
A Career Built on Student Potential
Colin's path into education was not necessarily a planned one.
While studying journalism at Northeastern University, he participated in a study abroad experience in Ireland where he worked in student advising. It was there that a mentor first recognized his talent for supporting students. Taking that advice to heart, Colin began building a career dedicated to helping students navigate educational opportunities.
One of his earliest roles was with College Possible, where he worked directly with students and gained a foundational understanding of educational inequities. Here he supported students virtually, advising high-achieving, first-generation students from low- and moderate-income backgrounds across Alabama, Florida, and Texas. There, he witnessed firsthand how access to information and guidance could dramatically alter students' trajectories.
"It was frustrating to watch students who were incredibly capable being recommended to go to community college when, with the right support, they were attending places like Harvard, Yale, Princeton, and Penn."
From there, Colin moved to the University of Minnesota Duluth as a regional admissions counselor, earning his Master of Education from the University of Minnesota while gaining a behind-the-scenes perspective on higher education admissions.
His career continued through Genesys Works, where he coordinated work-readiness and internship experiences for college students, and later at Achieve Twin Cities, helping high school students connect college and career planning directly to their educational experiences.
Today, Colin's work at SPPS brings together many of those experiences combining career exploration, work-based learning, and student support into one role.
A Self-Described "Professional Cheerleader"
What has kept Colin in this work for so many years is not a particular program or initiative. It is the students.The opportunity to watch students believe in themselves, and recognize strengths they didn’t know they had continues to motivate him, even when the work itself can be challenging.
"I really consider myself a professional cheerleader. I don't think I do much for students besides giving them access to materials and connecting them to things they would have found eventually on their own. I just help them do it a little bit faster. All of these students are so much more capable than they give themselves credit for. It's a gift to be a witness to that growth.”
The Value of Guidance in an Information-Rich World
When asked about challenges facing Minnesota students today, Colin points to a reality that is often overlooked: having too much information can be just as challenging as having too little.
Students today have access to more college and career information than ever before. Yet navigating that information can be overwhelming without trusted guides. This highlights for him a need for a direct point of contact that helps guide them through the sea of information.
For Colin, this is where organizations like MinnesotaCAN play a critical role.
"People are doing good work and trying their best, but we still need more help. MinnesotaCAN brings together people doing this work, combining resources, combining brains, exchanging expertise, and trying to fill in the gaps where there are gaps in the system."
By bringing together practitioners from different sectors, MinnesotaCAN creates opportunities to share resources, exchange expertise, and identify gaps that no single organization can address alone.
Why MinnesotaCAN Matters
Among MinnesotaCAN's member benefits, collaboration is what most appeals to Colin.
While he values professional development and resource sharing, he sees the coalition's greatest strength as its ability to connect people doing similar work across the state. Building relationships, learning from one another, and working collectively toward student success are all critical to strengthening Minnesota's college access and attainment ecosystem.
As someone whose career has touched many of the organizations and communities represented within MinnesotaCAN, he sees the organization as a timely addition to the field. After years of working alongside many of the individuals and organizations involved in the network, he is excited by the coalition's potential to bring practitioners together in meaningful ways and help amplify efforts already happening across Minnesota.
As MinnesotaCAN continues to grow, members like Colin remind us that student success is a shared responsibility. Whether supporting students through college planning, career exploration, internships, or workforce development, the goal remains the same: helping young people recognize their potential and equipping them with the tools to reach it.
