Gov. Youngkin wants every high school student to graduate with a credential or associate degree

 from Cardinal News by Susan Cameron (October 26, 2022)

The Governor announced the initiative in Bristol; more is expected in December.

Every student who graduates from a Virginia high school should do so with a credential or associate degree that would allow them to “immediately be prepared to go right into life,” Gov. Glenn Youngkin said in Bristol on Wednesday.

The governor said he plans to announce in December he is seeking a budget amendment to fund expanding the program so that a credential or associate degree is a graduation requirement.

Doing so would “change lives and opportunities,” Youngkin told Cardinal News. “So, I believe that we have both the capabilities to expand that extensively. And there’s no reason why it couldn’t be incorporated into our graduation requirements.”

Youngkin appeared at the Bristol Train Station as part of a Speaker Series co-sponsored by Cardinal News and the Bristol Chamber of Commerce. The event, which focused on economic development in Southwest Virginia, drew more than 100, including the Southwest Virginia legislative delegation and local government, education and business officials. Other co-sponsors were the United Company, and the Train Station.

Opinion: We need more people to go to college

 from the Washington Post, by Catherine Rampell.

(from NoVaSTEMlearning: read the comments on the Post website.)

It’s become somewhat unfashionable to say this, but: We actually need more people going to, and ultimately graduating from, college.

Enrollment in higher education is plummeting, and K-12 students are falling behind on key skills needed to succeed in college and later in life. The issue is broader than dismal new reading and math scores for youths. These trends threaten our future workforce and, ultimately, the U.S. economy.

New preliminary data from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center shows that college enrollment has nosedived in recent years. From fall 2019 (the last full semester pre-pandemic) through fall 2022, undergraduate enrollment declined more than 7 percent; for freshmen alone, it tanked more than 10 percent.

Graduate enrollment is up a bit over this period, about 2 percent. But when it comes to quickly moving Americans into the middle class, trends in undergraduate enrollment (especially for associate’s degrees) arguably matter more.

Worryingly, the biggest declines in enrollment the past few years have been in these programs. More detailed spring semester data show that community college enrollment dropped nearly 17 percent from 2020 to 2022.

What’s happening? Usually when the economy is bad, higher education does well, and vice versa. Enrollment last peaked in 2010, for instance, in the wake of the financial crisis. When job opportunities are scarce, people seek shelter in the higher-education system, where they can upgrade their skills and

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The new Python Editor for micro:bit teaching, learning, and tinkering

The #microbit Python Editor from @microbit_edu is designed to help students who are learning to code using a text-based language. It's full of tools to help you spend more time teaching, from modelling programming tasks to testing and developing code #edtechteachers #csteachers #coding

Morgan State STEM Expo - Saturday October 29, 9am - 2pm

 

Upcoming STEM and Dyslexia Events from the Dyslexic Edge

 Fall 2022 events from the Dyslexic Edge, emphasizing STEM academic and career pathways. Read more at www.thedyslexicedge.org.

VT's Alexandria Innovation Campus announces K-12 STEM events for Fall 2022

 See more at https://www.vt.edu/innovationcampus/k12programs.html. 

K-12 STEM AND COMPUTING EVENTS FOR 2022-23

The Virginia Tech Innovation Campus has an exciting line-up of events scheduled for 2022-23 aimed at supporting STEM education and computing in the D.C. Area. 

Use our registration form to volunteer or support any of the events as an individual, a business or a community organization!

Fall 2022

• Oct. 20, 5:30 pm to 6:30 pm
  
• STEMposium Parent Night at George Mason Elementary School 
  
• Oct. 29, 10:00 am to 1:00 pm
  Virginia Tech K-12 STEM and College Fair at Nannie J. Lee Memorial Recreation Center
  
• Nov. 10, 5:30 pm to 6:30 pm
  STEMposium Parent Night at Jefferson Houston PreK–8 IB School

Spring 2023

• Feb. 23, 5:30 pm to 6:30 pm
  STEMposium Parent Night at Samuel Tucker Elementary School
• March 6-9, 3:00 pm to 6:30 pm
  Virginia Tech STEM Acceleration and Enrichment Program
• April 20, 5:30 pm to 6:30 pm
  STEMposium Parent Night at James K. Polk Elementary School

Summer 2023

• Drone Summer Program
• Quantum Computing for Girls
  VOLUNTEER REGISTRATION

  For additional information on Innovation Campus K-12 prorgams, contact Dr. Pamela O. Gilchrist (pamelag@vt.edu) Director, K-12 Education.