THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, September 11, 1994 TAG: 9409110046
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JON GLASS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHESAPEAKE LENGTH: Medium: 88 lines
As industries restructure and technology changes rapidly, high school graduates these days are facing challenges never envisioned a generation ago.
Now, more than ever, educators say, students must be prepared to meet the technical and academic demands of a global business world to make a smooth transition into the work force.
To meet those needs in the 21st century, Virginia's secretary of education wants to develop a plan local school districts can use to do just that.
At meetings throughout the state, including Hampton Roads, citizens will get a chance this month to tell state officials what they thinks a school-to-work plan should include.
``We're not coming in and saying, `You will do this, or you will do that.' It will all be locally driven,'' said Cynthia S. Taylor, executive director of the Virginia Business-Education Partnership Program, which is coordinating efforts for Education Secretary Beverly Sgro.
``It's not a Band-Aid approach,'' Taylor said. ``It's really a comprehensive, communitywide approach.''
The evolution of the work force is a key element driving the statewide effort to reform public education. Business enterprises are becoming more oriented toward teamwork, projects and technology.
Comments gathered from the public meetings will be routed to Gov. George F. Allen's Commission on Champion Schools, charged last spring with improving the quality of the material taught in Virginia's classrooms.
Creating tougher academic standards is the ultimate goal of the reform, including the school-to-work plan, Taylor said.
``That's the bottom line for all students,'' Taylor said. ``Anything we do will be built on academics and to help them obtain meaningful careers and employment opportunities. We're looking at all young people - not just one track.''
More school districts, including several in Hampton Roads, have begun shifting from the traditional vocational track, in which students learned a trade but took less-challenging academic courses, to a ``tech-prep'' program that combines tough academics with technical training. All five school districts in Hampton Roads already have or are developing a tech-prep curriculum.
Key to any school-to-work plan is the cooperation of local business and industry, educators said.
``Without business involvement, you would not have positions for students to move from one stage to the next,'' said William Davis, principal of the Norfolk Technical and Vocational Center.
By working with high schools to recruit employees, Davis said, businesses could ``discover a new vein of qualified workers,'' with substantial savings on training costs.
The federal government is encouraging states to develop school-to-work plans. Virginia's effort is being launched with a $330,000 grant to develop guidelines.
There is one potential political hitch, however: If Virginia wants to receive more federal money to help support local programs, the state will have to submit its plan for approval. The prospect of federal strings could kill it.
The Allen administration and some members of the state Board of Education are leery of adopting the Goals 2000 initiative because of fears of federal control.
``We have so many people against federal funding of any type in education,'' Taylor said. ``The governor is looking very closely at that.''
Virginia could adopt its own school-to-work plan without federal funds, she said.
``The mastery of basic academic skills and higher order skills is mandatory,'' said Kay Brown, a state Department of Education spokeswoman and project manager of the proposed school-to-work plan. ``Industry has been perturbed for some time by people who don't read well or communicate well or can't compute well. People used to stumble into a job. It's just not that way anymore.'' ILLUSTRATION: Graphic
WHERE TO GO
The Virginia Business-Education Partnership Program is holding
meetings across the state this month to give the public a chance to
help shape state school-to-work guidelines. Several will be held in
the Hampton Roads area.
Where: Holiday Inn Chesapeake, 725 Woodlake Drive
When: 7-9 p.m. Monday
Where: Eastern Shore, Nandua High School, Onley
When: 7-9 p.m. Sept. 28
For details, call the Business-Education Partnership Program
office at (804) 225-4353.
by CNB