Are Charter Schools the Savior of Failing Districts?

While high school is typically associated with AP exams, English Literature class, prom, and football games, some campuses today are renewing their focus on an unexpected area: agriculture!

According to the Dallas News, the study of agriculture and its related sciences is gaining popularity on a handful of public high school campuses. Specifically, students from various urban and suburban school districts throughout Texas are leading the renewed interest in agriculture sciences.

In a technology-driven economy, the growing interest in agricultural sciences challenges centurion stereotypes of the industry. As the director of the Vocational Agriculture Teachers Association of Texas asserts, agricultural education has also broadened to encompass a wide range of city-based careers from veterinary science to biomedical research.” In addition, the agricultural-based vocational programs offered to public school students are thriving in urban areas, potentially due to shifts in population trends from some of the state's more rural regions.

As agricultural science continues to reinvent itself through technological and innovative developments, more public high school students enjoy the challenges of an education and future careers in the industry.

This video reports on jobs in the agricultural science field.

The Evolution of Agricultural Sciences

While the traditional roles of agriculture were once reserved for farming, today’s agricultural education programs highlight modern business practices. Modern agricultural corporations are beginning to hire more and more researchers, experts, and analysts – all while challenging industry

As E.coli outbreaks grow with regularity, public schools are being scrutinized for their lunches. According to Associated Press reports released in early November, the leader of the House Education and Labor Committee is investigating the health and safety of public school lunches.

After California’s representative, George Miller, brought attention to a deadly outbreak of E. coli that resulted in two deaths and dozens of reported illnesses, the government is working to ensure that school meals are protected from these dangers. Although there were no reported schools specifically impacted by the recent E. coli outbreak, Miller believes that the Government Accountability Office should take responsibility for ensuring that schools are not purchasing their meats and produce from contaminated facilities.

Are School Lunches Safe for Consumption?

In examining many political leaders’ demands for increased food safety measures in public schools, the Associated Press further reports that “Federal authorities had failed to tell schools about recalls of potentially tainted peanut products and canned vegetables, and cafeterias may have unknowingly served them to children.” Expanding on this concern, the Government Accountability Office also discovered that the U.S. Agriculture Department was inconsistent with its efforts in contacting schools about distributed food recalls.

While students from all socioeconomic backgrounds commonly purchase school lunches, an estimated 30 million students depend upon federally funded lunch and breakfast programs from school cafeterias as their only source of nutrition and sustenance. This fact alone has prompted community leaders to express their outrage over the

Many public high schools are focused on preparing students for the rigors of a traditional, four-year college education. However, are other students, especially those interested in joining the workforce immediately upon graduation, being neglected in the process?

In recent years, funding issues and budget cuts have forced high schools to drop career-oriented elective courses. However, proponents of vocational education believe that the loss of these career programs has prompted many students to lose interest in high school in general.

Thankfully, there are public technical high schools throughout the country that specialize in vocational training – much to the delight of students who are interested in entering the workforce immediately upon receiving their high school diploma!

Vocational Programs: Preparation for the “Real World”

While most high schools offer on-campus vocational courses, some districts have collaborated to create district and county-wide vocational institutions. For example, Blackstone Valley Regional Vocational Technical High School, located in Upton, Massachusetts, gives high school students the opportunity to pursue an array of career-based courses, such as culinary arts, cosmetology, plumbing, healthcare, and dental assisting.

As Blackstone’s mission asserts, the high school is designed to foster “integrated academic and vocational technical skills, empowering each student to achieve world-class educational excellence, diverse career opportunities, and individual success in an ever-changing global society.”

There are, of course, similarities between Blackstone and the typical high school. Blackstone students must follow a core curriculum, such as math,

Entering into the medical field no longer means demanding college lab classes, medical school, and residency programs. In fact, you can start your medical career right at your local public school. Indeed, some public high schools are offering medical vocational programs that prepare their students for the medical industry – right after earning their high school diploma.

The NCES report, Vocational Education in the U.S. reports that "Most public high school students participate in vocational education. In 1992, almost all public high school graduates (97 percent) completed at least one vocational education course, and 87 percent completed at least one occupationally specific course (table 1). On average, graduates completed the equivalent of almost four full-year courses in vocational education (3.8 credits), with two and a half of these courses in occupational program areas."

Medical Training during High School

While many public schools across the country offer their own unique versions of vocational training, schools in the Western Colorado region are earning great acclaim for their healthcare profession programs, which are held in conjunction with the local community college.

As the Daily Sentinel reports, eligible juniors and seniors from the area’s seven high schools can apply for an advanced medical training program hosted at Western Colorado Community College. Focusing on the profession of healthcare, “The courses whet students’ appetites for careers in health care by offering a broad introduction to the field.” High school students in the program receive advanced