Dr. Cade Brumley, Louisiana Superintendent of Education, noted in our local KTBS-3 podcast “we’ve heard the term high school redesign for a long time. For a couple of three decades, we have been talking about change, but those movements have been slow. The question is what can we change to fundamentally improve our high schools?”
At present, 80% of our high school students are on the university pathway and 20% are on career or military pathways. At the same time, the graduation rate of our universities is way below half. These statistics strengthen the case that we need to prepare our children to meet their potential for all options. Dr. Brumley said that “we should strengthen our handoffs from high school to either of three positive next steps for our children – university, career, or military service.
Students who start but don’t finish their university degree are often left with debt and without a specific skill to become employed. Dr. Brumley notes, “it is why when you look at the colleges in Louisiana, we see the average student age is 27. It is because for a decade post high school graduation, young people are trying to figure out, ‘What am I going to do now? How am I going to support myself?” He noted, “What is needed is to give students more help in making informed decisions about their future while they are in high school.”
As far as improving the university pathway for students, Dr. Brumley notes the importance of “providing students and their family opportunity with dual enrollment at high school where they take classes for college credit. When the student takes this type of coursework in Advanced Placement, they are not only more likely to attend a college but are also more likely to stay beyond year one and graduate”.
As far as connection with career, Dr. Brumley notes “there is an opportunity in our high schools to substitute career work experiences and apprenticeships for things that are presently required in high school. This has led to the development of the Louisiana “Fast Forward” initiative that requires school systems to partner with agencies and groups that offer full apprenticeships with different graduation pathways.”
Caddo Works is a unique collaborative program of the Greater Shreveport Chamber of Commerce and Caddo Schools. The program is designed to connect students with real world career exposure with career events and hands-on learning experiences, it helps students consider the question, “what’s next after high school?”
Dr. Tim Magner, president of the Greater Shreveport Chamber said, “Caddo Works is about preparing our students for what’s next while showcasing the real opportunities that exist right here in Northwest Louisiana. By opening doors to our region’s employers, we will be helping students to discover their interests, build essential skills, and envision a future for themselves right here in our community.”
There is great improvement needed in school and community effects to equip students with relevant life and work skills – skills to ensure readiness for future jobs in the Louisiana economy. This will require the business community and schools to partner for internships, apprenticeships and expansion of career pathways in addition to the university pathway. It is just another way we can provide opportunity for the next generation to explore their passion and gifts and to unlock their potential.
Dr. Phillip Rozeman is a practicing cardiologist and co-chair of Leaders for a Better Louisiana that represents the union of the Council for a Better Louisiana (CABL) and the Committee of 100 for Economic Development (C100).