As the centerpiece of conferences and federal initiatives across the educational spectrum, career pathways could be seen as be the latest fad offering community colleges the promise of increased funding and student success. In contrast, the authors of this paper contend that career pathways are the building blocks of a critically needed systemic transformation that will position community colleges as leaders in the effort to address some of the most pressing economic and social concerns facing the country today--not as a short term fix or project, but as incubators of innovation capable of changing the face of education in America.