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It has been 10 years since my youngest son graduated from the Anchorage School District. Since then I have had very little involvement with his ASD, but for the better part of the past 27 years I have been heavily involved in the employment side of employment for hundreds of local people. My experience includes 10 years as a restaurant owner and 17 years as a professional trade association leader in the construction and oil and gas industries recruiting, training, and retaining a qualified workforce. .
From my experience, every industry in this state is facing severe worker shortages, so what has been done to date to match the skills of ASD graduates with the skills needed by Alaskan businesses is I found out that it wasn't working.
Last November, I learned about the Academies of Anchorage (AoA) concept promoted by ASD.
I have heard ASDs cite stagnant graduation rates, low attendance rates, and a lack of student engagement and connection as challenges facing ASD. As I started learning about the academy concept, I began to understand how it could benefit not only the students, but local businesses as well. I have come to believe that this new career-focused program can play an important role in growing the local workforce and reversing the trend of mass migration of young people from the state. . At that point I wanted to participate.
In December, I began co-chairing AoA's Career Focused Academy Strategy Team. The team is the group responsible for determining which academies and career paths each of Anchorage's eight high schools offers its students, and is comprised of 13 teams comprised of educators, community organizations, and educators. One of them. and the business community. This special tactical team was tasked with doing the work necessary to begin implementing the academy initiative in the Anchorage School District.
The results of this community effort are impressive. Next school year, all freshmen from her eight comprehensive high schools in the Anchorage School District will be assigned to Freshman Academy, where they will begin learning about career opportunities in the state. They attend career expos, learn about Alaska trade and technical schools, explore college options and visit college campuses, and take Freshman Academy Career Exploration (FACE) courses. You will also learn about the “soft skills” needed to become a reliable worker.
At the end of their first year, they choose a pathway offered by their high school academy. That pathway becomes the learning lens for the rest of the learning experience.
The academy was determined by market demand, student and parent interest, and available resources. Not surprisingly, many schools will offer pathways such as health services, construction, business and technology, and science and engineering based on current and projected job market conditions.
Pathways range from transportation and logistics to business management, health sciences, natural resource management, construction technology and project management.
There are paths for students who are going to university, those who prefer a trade or vocational path, and those who plan to start working immediately after graduation. Liberal arts learning is woven into every pathway.
Local businesses will also be involved in providing curriculum that meets industry needs, career introductions to students, job shadowing opportunities, internship opportunities, and even work opportunities.
When its first Freshman Academy graduates in four years, at some stage approximately 13,000 students will have joined this career-driven education system. This is a huge boon for local workers.
The concept is new to Anchorage and is not yet perfect, but it will change to meet market demand and student interest.
It's still a great concept. Working in multiple cities across the United States, we have successfully brought together leaders in education and business to ensure a qualified workforce for our communities.
We encourage employers to learn more about the Academy of Anchorage and how they can become involved in recruiting, training and retaining a qualified workforce.
This is our greatest opportunity to improve educational outcomes, develop our local workforce, and keep young people in our great state in the good-paying jobs we all want them to have. is.
Rebecca Logan is CEO of the Alaska Support Industry Alliance. For more information about Anchorage Academy, please visit www.asdk12.org/Academies.
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