Op-Ed: When picking a path to graduation, high school students have more options than ever

By State Reps. Dave Quall and Tim Probst

Special to The Bellingham Herald

August 28, 2009

Link to the online story here.

In the not-so-distant past, it wasn’t unusual for a student to graduate from high school and move directly into a well-paying job. Some of us chose to go on to college but it wasn’t a necessity.

Times, as we know, have changed. Our state’s Employment Security Department reports that in 1947 about 34 percent of Washington’s labor force worked in manufacturing. That number has fallen to about 10 percent. A growing share of our labor force now works in industries such as aircraft manufacturing, engineering services, and scientific research and development – industries that require a college education.

By 2014, 77 percent of new, family-wage jobs in Washington will be held by workers with education or training beyond high school.

But here’s the problem. Only about 30 percent of high school graduates continue beyond high school. And in 2006, only 77 percent of students who began 9th grade in 2001 graduated.

Why is it, then, that at a time when higher education is more important than ever, so many of our kids are failing to complete even a basic K-12 education, let alone some sort of college degree or apprenticeship?

Pinpointing the reasons so many students drop out of high school is incredibly difficult. During our work in schools and in the Legislature, we’ve seen over and over that a one-size-fits-all approach to education simply doesn’t work.

What does work is offering choices. The more pathways we offer our students, the more likely we can keep them in school and even encourage them to continue their education beyond high school.

That’s why the Legislature has worked tirelessly to find new ways for the thousands of bright, capable students who don’t necessarily thrive in a traditional high school setting to get a quality education that prepares them for a successful future.

The new skills center in Skagit County is one example. The skills center will provide high school students vocational and technical programs such as boat-building and automobile technology. Such programs were once available only outside our high schools but with these new skills centers cropping up around the state that’s quickly changing.

Running Start is another popular example of an alternative pathway. It provides high school students an opportunity to attend college-level classes tuition-free and earn both high school and college credits. This incredibly successful program not only provides an affordable entry into college for many students, but opens doors to classes that high school students might never otherwise experience.

And for high school students who don’t think college is for them, but would consider some kind of technical program, we passed House Bill 1758 and expanded Running Start to provide those students access to the excellent technical programs at our public colleges. Many of the 77 percent of jobs requiring some kind of post-high school education don’t require a four-year degree but do require vocational or technical training. House Bill 1758 ensures students can pursue such programs.

House Bill 1758 also allows students who complete an associate degree at a community or technical college to also receive a high school diploma. For students enrolled in Running Start, or older students who never graduated but would like to go back to school, this makes an associate degree all the more valuable.

Our goal is to educate more students for a successful life and build the pipeline of workers qualified for the 77 percent of jobs needing post-high school education. Whether that education comes from a high school classroom, a college classroom, an auto body shop or a boat-building warehouse isn’t important – the knowledge and skills students gain are.

Students struggling to find their way through high school should not give up. And we should not give up on them.

For more information on the many pathways available for high school students, visit www.housdemocrats.wa.gov/members/quall.

Rep. Dave Quall, D-Mount Vernon, is a former high school counselor, former Running Start counselor at Skagit Valley College, and chairman of the House Education Committee. He can be reached at quall.dave@leg.wa.gov. Rep. Tim Probst, D-Vancouver, is CEO of the Washington Workforce Association and vice-chair of the House Education Committee. He can be reached at probst.tim@leg.wa.gov.