Published August 29, 2018
Additional STEM East Region articles:
GREENVILLE, NC – Education and business
leaders advocate the need to break down the
silos in which they have traditionally operated.
After all, their common aim is a well-prepared
workforce, so a unified effort clearly makes
sense. But what does it really look like when
talk turns into action and the silos disappear?
For a clear picture, look no further than the
eastern region of North Carolina, where for the
past eight years business and education leaders
have emerged from their boardrooms and
district offices, come together at the table, and
tackled long-standing issues that had resulted
in a repeated disconnect between what
education was producing and what businesses
needed in their employees.
The catalyst for this change has been
STEM East, an offshoot of NCEast Alliance, an
economic development group focused on
shaping a transitioning work landscape. STEM
East officials formed the Eastern North Carolina
Employers and Superintendents Council with
superintendents from the 11 school districts
in the region and 11 key business and industry
leaders whose companies rely on local school
systems for their most important commodity –
that well-prepared workforce.
“We want a workforce of inquisitive minds.
We don’t want somebody to take the notebook
that says, ‘Here’s how we’ve always done it.’
We want a workforce that can take us to the
next level,” said Duke Energy Government and
Community Relations Manager Millie Chalk.
“And that to me is what STEM is providing us,
and that is what our commitment to STEM
education in North Carolina is really about –
How do we build a better workforce? How do
we grow our economy to be more productive
and to do more and be more? That really comes
from a grassroots effort in education.”
Businesses are eager to step up and support
education when it clearly listens to and meets their
needs. In eastern North Carolina, that is happening
through ever-growing K-12 STEM programs that
engage students, add relevance to their education,
expose them to careers in the region, and cultivate soft skills needed in
today’s workforce.
“This pedagogical approach to inquiry uses the idea of, ‘We are going
to be developing you as a student who can work in a group and ask
questions of each other and communicate with each other and make
your own presentation about what it is that you’re learning,’” said STEM
East Executive Director Bruce Middleton. “These are discrete skills that
you can work on, and they are important for the workplace.”
STEM, STEAM, STREAM, and similar approaches are more about
developing these essential skills that will be key to employability in the
future if the recent past is an accurate barometer. According to a 2017
US Bureau of Labor Statistics report, “Employment in STEM occupations
grew by 10.5 percent . . . between May 2009 and May 2015, compared
with 5.2 percent net growth in non-STEM occupations.”
National jobs data is telling, but even more important to employers
in the region are projections that their future employees will have the
knowledge and skills necessary for open positions, work well together,
and desire to stay in the area. Toward that end, major employers such
as Duke Energy, Fleet Readiness Center East, Hyster-Yale, and regional
health care providers have representatives on the STEM East advisory
council. They share best practices, help fund STEM programs, put on
summer camps, offer a mobile Fab Lab, mentor and train teachers,
and offer internships and field trips to give educators and students a
glimpse at the job opportunities in their own backyard.
Mark Meno, research and engineering group head at FRC East, where
about 850 engineers are employed, said clearer communication has
been helpful in breaking down the silos. “Education is only reacting
to what they think they’re hearing from industry, and industry is not a
clear communicator because we can’t speak educationese,” he said. “So,
a lot of times we end up with this weird alignment issue that misses
the mark slightly, and 10 years later we look at the output and we’re
like, ‘Uh oh, that went wrong.’ . . . STEM East is addressing the issue. The
conversation is happening at the table.”
Further proof of progress, says Craven County CTE Director Chris
Bailey, is that the eastern region is a certified work-ready community
based on jobs being profiled by ACT® WorkKeys® and students being
rated on National Career Readiness Certificate® testing.
“What that does is it shows that there is solid alignment between
secondary and postsecondary programs and industries to show that
we’re trying to build a superhighway with multiple on- and off-ramps
where students can get the careers they want,” Bailey said.