Preparing high school students for success in today’s job market requires different schooling than it did a generation ago. A committee has been formed at Cook County High School (CCHS) to address just that and to formulate recommendations to bring to the school board later this spring regarding what kind of curriculum, facility, and staffing will meet the needs of today’s students.
The goal of this committee, called the “CCHS Career Readiness/ Vocational Education Planning Team,” is to “design a postsecondary and workforce readiness curriculum that includes the knowledge and skills that high school graduates need in order to do credit-bearing coursework at a two- or four-year college or university and/or to embark successfully on a career-track employment position (that pays a living wage, provides benefits, and offers clear pathways for advancement through further education and training).”
Notes from the committee’s first meeting on February 1 say, “What should our future curriculum in the areas of industrial tech, business education, family and consumer sciences, and work studies encompass? …What should we offer, what can we afford, how can we deliver these programs in a cost-effective and efficient manner? Do we include adults?”
At the meeting was John Raphael of the Minnesota Department of Education. He recommended that the district try to think outside the box, develop ways to collaborate with other groups, embrace online learning opportunities and search for other ways to take advantage of opportunities that fall outside traditional paradigms.
Rich Sill of the Carl Perkins Consortium, which handles federal funds for career and technology curricula, talked about upcoming needs for a technologically skilled work force and how students could be prepared to meet those needs through hands-on learning.
The committee sponsored a community discussion on February 28 about how CCHS could help prepare its students to join the work world. Principal Gwen Carmen said the committee is looking at how CCHS could support the career and educational needs of both high school students and adults in the community in conjunction with other entities in the community.
Committee member Pat Campanaro said that as the large number of Baby Boomers retire, gaps will open up in the work force, and “further education is something that’s going to be needed in some of the jobs that are going to be out there.”
Industrial education teacher Sam West said, “I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t believe that what I teach is valuable.” He recommended expanding the industrial arts program and partnering with vocational schools to offer classes for both youth and adults in order to expand the school’s benefit to the community.
Business education teacher Jane Gellner said that she is teaching computer skills to younger and younger students as technology becomes incorporated into all areas of modern life.
Superintendent Beth Schwarz said fewer and fewer students will be able to enter the career world directly from high school, although they won’t all need college, either. Principal Carman said that the goal for the school’s curriculum is to “help kids identify where they want to go.”
School counselor Bryan Hackbarth said he starts working with students in eighth grade to help them figure out what their vocational interests might be.
Cook County Higher Education Director Paula Sundet Wolf said that Higher Ed tries to train residents for living-wage jobs that are available here in Cook County. Higher Ed tries to respond to the needs of employers in the community as well, such as when the hospital and care center need more of certain kinds of nurses.
Those attending this meeting broke up into discussion groups. One of the suggestions to come out of a discussion group was to create more hands-on learning experiences, such as helping students build and sell products and participate in community affairs. One person suggested that the high school could run the currently little-used local PAC-13 TV station. Another comment was that it is important to build a strong economic environment for young people to enter. Some jobs, such as government jobs in natural resources and law enforcement, are more plentiful in Cook County, and the school could help students prepare for those types of jobs. One person pointed out that green initiatives could create business opportunities.
The committee will continue to meet and assess how the school could work in partnership with other entities to meet the needs of both its students and the community.
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