Are we properly preparing our kids for the workforce?

By Brian Nordli

Sunday, Nov. 16, 2014 | 2 a.m.

There is no easy solution to aligning Nevada’s education system with the state’s workforce needs.

A Brookings Institution study released this month said the need for workers with postsecondary education in science, technology, engineering and mathematics has outstripped the supply of workers with those skills. From elementary schools to colleges, Nevada’s education system is not yet equipped to produce that workforce, the report said.

State Board of Education member Mark Newburn said there are pockets of STEM success in school districts. Magnet programs and career and technical academies routinely produce students with high math scores and expose them to STEM-related careers.

But they are more like islands of success disconnected from the rest of the district, he said. If children in all schools were exposed to real-world applications of math and science, Newburn said, they would be more likely to search for jobs in STEM fields.

“That path for a lot of kids, and almost all kids in poverty and kids of color, is set early,” he said. “They’re done, and they’re off the STEM track early. Your mind is never opened up to the possibility.”

State Superintendent Dale Erquiaga said schools already have begun to address STEM needs by adopting Common Core state standards for math and Next Generation standards for science. Both emphasize hands-on activities that encourage students to think about real-world applications of what they’re learning.

But Erquiaga said more funding is needed to train teachers. He hopes the report will help create partnerships with the private sector and stay in the forefront of Gov. Brian Sandoval’s mind as he develops the state budget.

The report, “Cracking the Code on STEM,” highlighted both short-term and long-term solutions for Nevada to produce a stronger workforce. With the majority of STEM jobs requiring some postsecondary education, community colleges can immediately provide more certification courses for students, the researchers said. Those include training for HVAC systems operators, computer science IT jobs and health care jobs.

Warren Hioki, director of the College of Southern Nevada’s School of Advanced and Applied Technologies, was thrilled by Brookings’ conclusions.

Programs such as the college’s workshops with STEM field workers and networking events with companies expose students to careers in the field and help them find work.

“It’s right in line with our mission,” Hioki said. “The initiatives that we’re working on address all of this.”

Yet for Nevada to have a sustainable workforce, changes for a more STEM-focused education need to be put in place as early as elementary school, the report said. Statewide, only 34 percent of fourth-graders and 28 percent of eighth-graders are proficient in math, both lower than the national average.

Beth Wells, executive director for the Nevada STEM Coalition, hopes the report spurs Nevada legislators to institute the type of programs recommended by Brookings. Those include a matching grant system that combines the public and private sectors to help encourage teachers to incorporate STEM in their lesson plans.

The coalition, which advocates and promotes STEM education, will push legislators for more funding. It’s also developing a directory to connect STEM teachers with people in STEM careers and students in higher education, Wells said.

“It’s a very exciting time for STEM education,” Wells said.