THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, March 17, 1996 TAG: 9603170070
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY PAUL SOUTH, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: FRISCO LENGTH: Medium: 64 lines
Joyce Bornfriend remembers a time not so long ago when a high school diploma could ensure a person a good chance of gainful employment.
Not anymore.
``Back in the '60s, 60 percent of high school graduates could get a job after finishing high school,'' says Bornfriend, the former principal at Cape Hatteras School. ``Now that number is about 15 percent.''
With that in mind, Dare County's two high schools will begin a program in the fall of 1996 that will combine work experience with academics.
Known as the Career Academy concept, the program will mesh the traditionally separated college prep and vocational courses into a hybrid program designed to train students for the work force.
``In the past, vocational education and college preparatory classes have been viewed as separate roads,'' said Bornfriend, who serves as a special assistant to Superintendent Leon Holleman. ``What we're trying to do is blend these two roads.''
Initially, the Career Academy will focus on three areas, travel and tourism, visual and performing arts, and environmental sciences. Along with the core academic courses, students will have the opportunity to work in ``real-life'' work situations and to obtain college credits through the College of the Albemarle and The University of North Carolina-Wilmington
``What we're trying to do is provide students with a wide variety of exit ramps,'' Bornfriend said. ``So many students see life beginning after they complete high school. When we ask them about the future, they say they want to go to college or they want to get a job. But aside from that, they really don't know.
``This will help them be more directed and more focused on the future.''
When the program begins in the fall, it will be open to seniors only. In subsequent years, it will be available to juniors and seniors. It will include internships and community service, as well as course work. Mentors from the community will be involved as lecturers.
Attendance, grades and an interview will be part of the application process for students. Faculty at both schools will recruit participants.
While no studies have been done on the impact such programs have on standardized test scores and classroom performance, Bornfriend said students involved in programs at other schools, like the Charlotte-Mecklenburg system, seem to have more confidence in their abilities.
``What we hope is that students who get into the academy who had not planned to do any post-high school education because they don't think they can do the work, will gain some confidence,'' she said. ``They'll not only learn that they can do the work, but that the academic courses they're taking are relevant to day-to-day life.''
Bornfriend said the program will not cost the school district additional money.
``Innovation in education doesn't have to be expensive,'' Bornfriend said.
The changing demands of the workplace require teachers to change as well, Bornfriend said.
``We're doing our students a disservice if we don't do everything we can to prepare them for the real world,'' she said. ``This program will not only show them what is required by employers, but why the courses we teach are important.'' by CNB