Lexington, KY - Dr. Terry Holliday, commissioner of education for the state of Kentucky, blogged in early December, " Ö education drives employment, and employment drives the economy. The future of Kentucky depends heavily on our ability to improve the educational attainment and outcomes for ALL Kentucky children."
His clear message is that schooling today extends beyond the three Rs to the three Es.
Holliday has begun a statewide campaign with Kentucky Chamber of Commerce President Dave Adkisson to open business leaders' eyes to the importance of education improvement in Kentucky. With implementation of new and more rigorous core content standards, the push for excellence is already underway. Fearing pushback from school districts and communities that may find the new standards difficult to attain, Holliday and Adkisson are proactively trying to help business people understand not only why they should stand firm in supporting stronger student achievement, but also how businesses can support student success directly.
Adkisson says the Chamber is encouraged because Kentucky has been at the forefront nationally in adopting Common Core standards. He and Holliday want the business community to rally behind education leaders to support new standards and not water them down, especially when and if they become painful to fulfill (such as when test scores come back next spring, bringing a reality check to schools and parents, or when disagreements arise about whether scientific concepts should be presented in step with national standards).
BEAM will benefit
Initial discussions for the Bluegrass Economic Advancement Movement are quite focused on workforce issues and how manufacturing can grow in our region when there's already a lack in some skilled areas. Lexington is ahead of many other parts of Kentucky in workers meeting workforce requirements generally. However, when the economy recovers and Baby Boomers retire, skilled workers will be in higher demand and manufacturers will locate where skilled workers are plentiful. If BEAM is to succeed, the collaboration between business and education leaders must lead to a better qualified, more robust workforce over time.
Holliday emphatically believes that Kentucky must do more to prepare students for work and for college. Employers tell him, "Graduates do not have the skill set needed, the higher-order skills in problem solving." He is also hearing from the higher education sphere that students do not arrive ready for college-level work.
"Our percentage of graduates that are college- or career-ready is somewhere around 38 percent," he said.
Redefining proficiency
Recognizing that low achievement is no excuse for low standards, the state is pushing for proficiency to mean something different now.
"In the past," said Holliday, "proficiency referred to basic skills, but now proficiency refers to college or career-readiness."
He added, "We're asking the business community to stay with us on this, stay firm Ö these standards are important and college readiness is a different measure than just basic skills proficiency."
This push to greater educational heights should lead our region and our commonwealth to greater economic strength. The five-year plan anticipates raising the percentage of graduates deemed college/career ready to 68 percent.
Gates Foundation shows interest
Diana Taylor, a public policy consultant for the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce, said, "This is really a critical time in Kentucky education for the employer community."
This is the first time that there's been an "overt acknowledgement among education leaders that you've got to prepare students with the same level of rigor in their courses, whether they want to go to two-year or four-year college, or into a career directly," Taylor said.
Taylor sees policy and education leaders in Frankfort, folks in K-12 and higher education, and business leaders all now understanding the importance of more rigor, and this sense of common cause has led to support from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. The Gates Foundation support is funding the tour that Adkisson and Holliday are making, as well as Prichard Committee work to build community support for higher standards.
The synergy between business and education leaders in Kentucky today is palpable. "Employers in Kentucky are to be commended for their interest in this, as everybody knows how busy they are," Taylor said, adding that their involvement is "a testament to their attention to the future of the state and their willingness to take that extra step to make a positive difference."
"Education is a top concern of the business community. It's the top policy priority of the Kentucky Chamber," said Adkisson. Readers, if you're not on board with this march toward excellence yet, it's time to make a commitment to support not just one or two, but all three, Es.
Jane S. Shropshire guides students and families through the college search process and is Business Lexington's Higher Ed. Matters columnist. Contact her at Jshrop@att.net.