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EDUCATION + PATHWAYS TO SUCCESS

Because Washington’s Kids Deserve Better.

At a Glance

  • The problem: We are failing our kids by applying “a one size fits all” approach versus implementing strategic pathways to success that enable every student-individualized guidance, support, and successful entry into the marketplace.
  • The current system was developed and implemented after World War II.
  • For 62 years, our current system has told every kid you must go to college to be successful.
  • The current Core 24 curriculum developed by Washington State Colleges
  • College is excellent and appropriate for some, but it is not right for every kid, and our kids should have a choice and be informed about other opportunities.
  • The current system is failing our kids!

Facts taken from the OSPI website.

1,147,573 students -67,362 teachers and $12,811 per pupil spending. $14,701,557,703 or almost 15 Billion dollars a year.

%

Graduation Rate

Which means 1 in 5 do not graduate despite the removal of a graduation exam.

%

Math

48.9% of all students met Math standards for their grade.

%

Science

46.7% of all students met Science standards for their grade

%

English

59.6% of all students met English Language standards for their grade.

Facts from the United States Department of Education.

Washington schools ranked 12th in the United States.

Facts from Pew Research.

U.S. education compared to the rest of the world:  38th in Math, and 24th in science.

Facts about the U.S. Higher education from Statista.com

50%

50% of college students complete four or more years of college

36%

36% of all adult Americans have a 4-year degree or better. (53 Million)

< 2 million

Just under 2 million new bachelor’s degrees enter the job market every year.

21 Million

Twenty-one million kids enter college every year.  Average yearly cost of college $30,000.00

54% (and that number is increasing) of all college graduates are underemployed or unemployed.

Facts about the trades.

7.1 million available jobs: Great pay, no debt. 

In 2020, for the first time in history, the median income for construction workers surpassed the median national wage.

High Tech Trade Jobs: ASE certified mechanic could make between $80-$120,000 per year plus benefits.

Labor Market Crisis

10,000

10,000 jobs each day are being lost due to retirement.

50%

50% reduction in the workforce in Public Works with nobody to replace them.

7.1 million

7.1 Million Available jobs and climbing in the trades.

Solutions

1. Create many pathways to success.

  1. Expose all kids to a variety of subjects that include auto shop, welding, woodworking, and others and do it in middle school and high school.
  2. Change the current graduation credit requirement to allow more electives to explore other career opportunities. Remove Core 24 to allow more exploration.
  3. Employ Labor market counselors in each school:
    1. To give real-world data on what is available in the labor market
    2. Give current information concerning how much you can expect to earn and what skills you may need to get that.
    3. Teach all kids how to prepare a resume and to interview.
  4. Through public-private, partnerships create, build, and staff; “Centers of excellence”- Regional Training centers that specialize in the Trades, Computer Programming, and Business that would serve as gateways into the job market as direct hire and High School completion.
  5. Give families and kids more choices between College, community college, Trade School, Skills centers, Career and Technical, Military, private, public, on-line, and charter schools. One size does not fit all, and choice breeds competition and specialization for every kid.
  6. Collaborate with public works and develop internships, apprenticeships, and OJT training opportunities.
  7. Do the same for other careers.
  8. Test for aptitude and preparedness and provide guidance accordingly.

2. Refocus and simplify.

  1. Refocus on the basics in the early grades of Math, Reading, English, U.S. and World History, Civics, and exposure to the trades.
  2. No top-down – statewide policies- allow teachers to teach
  3. Remove the Education Districts and allow school districts to manage the budget, which would amount to 30% more funds.
  4. Free up teachers to teach.
  5. Fund skills centers at the same rate as other schools.
  6. Change the attitude that all kids have to go to college or that any other choice is somehow inferior. We must work to remove the 60-year stigma that somehow, trades are inferior or second-class.
  7. Utilize technology to deliver education to meet today’s needs. The current system will continue to fail our kids, and we must change the way we do school.
  8. Refocus all education on preparing all students for life after High School.

3. Choice, rigor, and parental involvement.

  1. Parents need to be included in their kid’s education and career planning.
  2. We should expect the best and deliver the best to our students so that they can be successful when done.
  3. Parents and Students should have a choice where and what type of education they receive.
  4. Schools should stop teaching comprehensive sex education and should only do so electively as the student and parent opt-in.