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| | The Best of CommonWealth Beacon OPINION | | Students at Southeastern Regional Vocational Technical School in South Easton. (Courtesy photo) |
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| | | By Lane Glenn, Maureen Lynch and John LaVoie |
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Not everyone should have to complete a four-year college degree to earn a living in a meaningful career field. But in the 21st century – and particularly in our innovative Massachusetts knowledge economy, which is getting even more competitive in the age of AI -- nearly all good-paying jobs today require at least some kind of education and training, like an apprenticeship, certificate, or associate degree, beyond high school. |
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The state has taken some steps meant to improve access to high school career and technical education (CTE), which provides pathways to solid futures for young people that don’t involve four-year universities. This includes updating facilities and equipment through additional Skills Capital Grants, and expanding Innovation Career Pathways in high-demand fields such as information technology, health care, and advanced manufacturing. |
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Meanwhile, recent investments in MassReconnect and MassEducate, which offer students free tuition at the state’s 15 community colleges, are driving significant enrollment increases. |
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Our two-year community colleges, however, were designed primarily as an entry point to higher education, with the assumption that most students would transfer to a four-year institution to complete a bachelor’s degree. Consequently, our community college system has not had the funding to offer comprehensive vocational training that is a central component of community colleges in other states. |
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This is a huge gap in our education system, one that we think regional collaborations, with help from the state and other partners, can and should address. Rethinking the structure and funding for career and technical education would not only open doors for more young people, but it would also help address the growing challenge the state faces in meeting the high demand for skilled workers. |
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We aren’t just advocating for this kind of change. As we outline here, we are part of an effort to develop a new model the state could adopt to transform our career and technical education system for the 21st century. At the heart of this vision is a robust collaboration between our K-12 and higher ed systems that we think is long overdue. |
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