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B Y K I L L I A N E D W A R D S
THINK BACK TO YOUR FIRST JOB after high school. Most likely it didn’t involve opportunities for advancement or a sizeable salary.
These days, though, the scene couldn’t be more different for some of Georgia’s high school graduates. Thanks to collaborative projects between technical colleges and high schools, the transition from high school to college has been streamlined, and students can earn college credits and technical certificates while still in high school, smoothly moving from graduation to good-paying jobs almost immediately.
Consider the case of Terri Nuckles:
She began taking health occupation classes in the ninth grade at West
Hall High School and by her senior year was working as a nurse’s
aide. When she graduated and enrolled at Lanier Technical College, she
already had a solid grounding in nursing. She’s now an LPN and plans
to become an RN.
Or Toby Hughes:
While
in high school, he attended programs offered through the Central Educational
Center in Coweta County. By the time he graduated from Newnan High School
in May 2001, Hughes was a certified fiber optic technician. By summer,
he was the project manager on a high-tech construction job, making an
annual salary of $52,000.
Then there’s
Keith Jenkins:
Born with physical challenges, he had to attend special-education classes.
But through a collaborative training program with his local technical
college, Jenkins not only graduated with his class but also completed
the Certified Manufacturing Specialist program while in high school and
now works at J-M Manufacturing in Adel.
And
Brooke Carson:
An honors graduate from Stephens County High School, she received her
diploma from North Georgia Technical College in Applied Business Technology
last September. She had taken Certified Customer Service Specialist courses
as a junior through dual-enrollment programs, and continued with online,
evening and summer classes to complete the diploma. Carson’s part-time
job at a local bank served two purposes: She received credit toward her
Applied Business Technology diploma and applied the skills she learned
to her job.
These are only a few success stories resulting from collaborations among technical colleges, high school systems, communities, and business and industry. The idea is to give students the skills they need to move from one level of education to another, and from success in education to success in a job.
And it’s working. More and more high school students have recognized the value of getting a jump-start on success. Participation in these collaborative programs has increased dramatically in the past few years. In 2000, 3,783 students took part. In 2002, the number almost doubled to 7,361.
FROM
HERE TO CAREER
Many of these programs are developed through the DTAE’s School to
Work initiative, which develops partnerships among schools, businesses
and community organizations. According to a preliminary evaluation recently
completed by the Occupational Research Group at the University of Georgia,
306 of 392 high schools in the partnerships’ service areas participated
in School to Work activities during 2001-2002.
Each partnership
has unique goals that reflect community needs, but all focus on increasing
career awareness, expanding employer involvement, strengthening student
achievement, and building systems that are supportive of youth and economic
development.
School to Work partnerships encourage programs such as dual-enrollment
and postsecondary options, which enable students to earn credit hours
that count as college credits as well as toward high school graduation
requirements. In addition, many schools join directly with area businesses
to provide on-the-job training to familiarize students with various business
fields.
The result is that students get the best education possible, and businesses get qualified employees. During the 2001-2002 school year, 4,086 private employers and 851 public and nonprofit employers participated in these School to Work activities.
“Everyone should be prepared to the same level,” says Patt Stonehouse, state coordinator of School to Work for the DTAE. “We’d like to help shape the technology and career curriculum in high schools because we’re dedicated to building the best workforce for Georgia.”
THE
REAL WORLD
“Mr. Thomas would be a good person to talk with about that,”
says Rudy Tabares, the drafting teacher for Griffin High School and Spalding
High School, when asked the benefits of Griffin Technical College’s
dual-enrollment drafting program.
But
he’s not talking about another teacher or administrator. He’s
talking about Adrian Thomas, a lanky high school junior taking his first
drafting class this year.
“The
class is very good,” Thomas says, as he maneuvers the computer mouse
to draw the next line of his AutoCAD assignment. “I like to work
with computers and design things.”
He is interested in pursuing a career in engineering, but he’s also
considering the multitude of options available to a skilled designer.
“There are more and more career fields opening up with computers
and design,” he says. “I’m trying to buy AutoCAD for
my computer at home so I can explore it more.”
Addressing students such as “Mr. Thomas” in a businesslike manner is just one of the many ways Tabares helps prepare them for the real world. Students also are encouraged to develop portfolios of their work that they can show to colleges or potential employers. They also complete an “Employability Skills” worksheet each week, grading themselves on timeliness, teamwork, effort and other work habits that are important to employers.
Reviewing the sheets helps Tabares determine which areas need work, and it helps students understand that being on time and prepared for work is just as important as what you do when you’re there.
Adding even more business-world reality to the classes are Brent Center and Maury Moseley, two professionals who team-teach the drafting classes with Tabares. (Center teaches at Griffin High, and Moseley teaches at Spalding High). Both work as engineering design draftsmen with Caterpillar’s Electric Power Product Group.
In the classroom, Center and Moseley share their experience and explain real-world applications of drafting. Along with Tabares, they show students the many options available in the engineering field, including mechanical, civil and architectural engineering.
“We’re
sparking an interest here,” says Center.
The three teachers know that not all the high school students they work with will go on to attend Griffin Tech or end up working at Caterpillar, but that’s not why they teach the classes. They know that inspiration can take many paths, and they just want to help support young lives.
“Someone gave me the opportunity, and [these students] need an opportunity just like we had,” says Moseley. “The classes provide some technical and computer knowledge that is valuable for any job they move on to, whether or not they become engineers.”
Like other
dual-enrollment programs, the drafting program allows students to receive
college credit for courses taken in high school. By earning high school
and college credit simultaneously, Center says, “students receive
the knowledge needed to accelerate their entrance into the workforce.”
