6 minute read
SLO County Office of Education
James
Brescia, Ed.D.
COUNTY SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS
WHAT IS AN APPRENTICESHIP?
What is the next chapter in your story? How do we best prepare for life after high school graduation? What if I want or need to change employment opportunities? Our most recent SLO Career and Technical Education (CTE) foundation meeting fielded these questions. Similar to the 2015 Oxford University and 2018 Cambridge University conferences I have written about, these questions apply beyond the borders of San Luis Obispo County. Those international conferences addressed audiences from the Americas, Europe, Asia, and Africa on the importance of thoughtful recruitment, training, and retention of employees. The U.K., London in particular, continues to face similar shortages to those in California. European, African, and Asian countries have consistently implemented aggressive CTE in secondary schools. Our CTE foundation reviewed successful programs and recommitted resources to additional programs. San Luis Obispo County is fortunate to have our local Assembly Member, Jordan Cunningham, and local State Senator John Laird also supporting these efforts in the legislature.
Education in the United States and across the globe continues to experience challenging times. The recent census reports that one out of three Americans (33 percent) attained a bachelor’s degree, and 12 percent hold an advanced degree such as a master’s, professional, or doctorate. Almost 9 out of 10 Americans (88 percent) possess a high school diploma or General Equivalency Diploma (GED). Educational attainment continues to vary by age, sex, race, nativity, and disability status. As America continues to navigate through federal and state mandates that impact our classrooms, our leaders must continue to include CTE as a piece of the educational puzzle. If you ask a puzzle master, you are advised to identify a suitable strategy leading to an acceptable solution. Like the puzzle master’s advice, CTE is a vital piece of the educational quest for student success. As we face an ever-changing world, it is essential to explore avenues that present multiple paths for students. CTE curriculum and subsequent apprenticeship programs strive to pair academics and high-level workplace skills necessary for the 21st century. Students, administrators, teachers, business members, community leaders, and even politicians have endorsed CTE programs across the country for the following reasons: • CTE-related jobs are in high demand. • CTE preparation can meet individual and community workplace needs. • CTE programs reduce drop-out rates in research and practice. • CTE classes serve to increase student engagement in both CORE and
CTE classes. • CTE curriculum increases student achievement during and after school. • CTE has the potential to maintain a cutting edge for U.S. business interests.
According to recent research, California is improving how it makes available timely and transparent information about career readiness and apprenticeships. However, we still have to prepare our community for post-secondary options and report our progress to the public. A central element of California’s positive move toward transparency and accountability is the California School Dashboard. The Dashboard shows how districts and schools are performing on a range of measures of student success, including tests, scores, graduation rates, and suspension rates. Our Dashboard is part of the significant shifts to the state’s public education system, including new standards, new assessment, and a locally driven funding formula. The Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) and the Local Control Accountability Plan (LCAP) use state and local indicator data from the Dashboard to monitor student progress. When Dashboard indicators identify student subgroups as low performing or low growth, districts should engage in continuous improvement to develop strategies and then monitor their effectiveness.
Our regional consortium, SLO Partners, convenes business, industry, education, and community leaders committed to working together for collective impact in workforce and economic development by aligning education systems and employment programs with economic opportunities. The Workforce Development Board, County Board of Supervisors, the Community College Chancellor’s Office, and local funders have supported SLO Partners in Pre-Apprenticeship and CTE programs. The San Luis Obispo County Office of Education (SLOCOE), Cuesta College, every school district, and charter school in our county continue to join forces in leveraging CTE funding to best serve the students in our county. I encourage everyone to learn more about our highly successful partnerships with Cuesta College, businesses, participants, and the community. SLOCOE and SLO Partners continue to engage in discussions and reviews of research related to recruitment, training, and workforce retention.
SLO Partners’ mission is to engage business partners and educators in aligning workforce needs with career and college pathways. We facilitate work experience opportunities to ensure that students have the skills and knowledge necessary for success in the workplace. We promote opportunities for businesses to maintain skilled workers required for a sound, growing economy. SLO Partners facilitates industry certifications, pre-apprenticeships, apprenticeships, and CTE dual enrollment. It is an honor to serve as your county superintendent of schools. “An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.” Benjamin Franklin
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