Then Peter Theisen introduced Michelle Judson of Skagit Stem to give an overview of the program.
Michelle is the former Vice President of Resource Development for British Petroleum. In retirement she joined the Skagit Stem Network. Her talked reviewed the work of Skagit Stem which is to address the gap between the needs of employers for employees who are proficient in science, technology, engineering and math, (STEM - get it?) and supply of employees provided by our northwest Washington school systems.
As one example, she noted that the northwest Washington school systems graduate about 34,171 STEM students but that is not nearly enough to meet the 94,544 STEM employees needed by Northwest employers each year. It is a gap of some 60,000 students. As a result, employers are importing employees from other areas. For jobs requiring four year degrees, employers need four to five times the number of students graduating from STEM programs in Northwest Washington.
Skagit Stem is part of a network of 10 other programs seeking to address the deficiency of STEM students. They focus on agriculture, manufacturing, medical assistance, electricians, engineers carpenters and K-12 teachers.
To address the problem, they look at kindergarten readiness, third grade math scores, post-secondary credential enrollment and where we lose students along the way. For example, too many student drop out of high school by the 11th grade. It seems that the transition to high school proves to be a problem. Some thirty percent of high school students, region wide, don’t graduate from high school.
Skagit STEM supports a “multi-pathway” approach to connect students with the hiring needs of employers. It does this through a “braided” program of weaving education with internships and exposure to real career jobs. They have a focus on equity and low income groups. The idea is to provide greater experience of what these jobs are like and the benefits of them. Internships, workplace education and mentoring and scholarships are part of the program.
