Educators can get reasonably close to figuring out which of their high school seniors are serious about college by counting who takes the American College Test.
Last year, 52 Iola High School juniors and seniors took the ACT, Principal Scott Crenshaw noted.
But that left 140 upperclassmen, nearly three-fourths of 11th- and 12th-graders, who did not.
So what does that mean?
?We have excellent instructors, and we have a rigorous curriculum,? Crenshaw said Wednesday. ?I don?t worry about our college-bound students being challenged and being prepared. But I have 140 other faces walking around. What am I doing for them??
Crenshaw spoke at Wednesday?s second annual Career and Technical Education banquet to a group of about 50 representatives from a cross-section of careers, such as law enforcement, agriculture, health care and manufacturing, as well as several educators and USD 257 school board members, all of whom serve as CTE committee members.
?CTE is a critical component of success for students post-high school,? Crenshaw told the visitors, pointing to the ongoing workforce shortage in Iola and Allen County. ?The workforce is crying out for help.?
Guidance counselor Melissa Stiffler spoke about the 23 different ?pathways? mapped out for students at IHS, which sets out recommended courses for students in pursuit of particular careers.
That number, she noted, has grown steadily over the past two years, and will soon expand in the 2019-2020 year to include wind farm technology and other energy-related fields.
She also noted IHS officials are investigating Anderson County High School and its CTE course on automotive technology expected to launch next year.
Jeremy Waldman, from left, talks about his internship at the Iola Police Department with Officer Danny Rodriguez and Detective Jared Froggatte.
THE GROUP heard from several students involved in CTE pathways, and since last year, senior internships with a number of partnering businesses and governmental agencies.
Student Jeremy Waldman spoke about his internship with the Iola Police Department, which has allowed him to experience law enforcement firsthand.
?I wanted to do something where I don?t know what I?m getting into every day. And that?s exactly the way it is with these guys,? Waldman said.
He showed pictures of him helping catalog evidence, inspecting batteries on radios and other equipment, and occasionally, riding on patrol with officers around town.
Waldman also spoke about his successful application to assist with the Kansas Bureau of Alcohol Beverage Control (ABC) with stings across the state, during which he would enter taverns and liquor stores to see which would be willing to serve alcohol to a minor.
