Without Technical Education - A Message to Legislators
Introductions - Ed Wyatt

Ed Wyatt, Welding Instructor at McKenzie Career Center, introduced the three other speakers, and invited attendees to a tour of the fine facilities at McKenzie. His opinions are best expressed in a handout provided to all attendees at the meeting.

A Message to Legislators
As each elected legislative official sits on his or her welded office chair and gives consideration to further budget cuts in the schools career and technical programs, he and his professional colleagues should reflect on the influence these programs have on the American society.

Without technical education, one could not sail across the ocean or travel into it's deepest depths; one could not ride a car, truck, bus, or train, or place a satellite into deepest space, or fly across these United States.

Without technical education, we would not have the breathtaking skyscrapers or bridges that span the many rivers and bays of this land. Who would build the pipelines, power plants, and factories that we depend upon without technical education?

Without technical education, one could not build the chemical and processing plants that provide food and drugs that diminish the pain and suffering; who would build the tractors, harvesters, and equipment to bring in the grain to help feed our nation?

With technical education we train the workforce of today and tomorrow so that we, as Americans, can continue to consider ourselves the most advanced nation in the world. This education should commence while they are in high school, thus giving them every opportunity to thrive in a technical arena of their choice. Almost every product we need to sustain and protect our lives is built with manufactured equipment that has technical education components.

Technical training transcends most every faction of the American way of life. It encompasses training in computer technology, auto service and repair, elements of engineering and agriculture, business and marketing services, construction trades, cosmology, digital electronics, early childhood education, food industry, health careers, interactive media, and welding. Success does favor the prepared mind. Technical education prepares the American student for success in the world in which we live.

As each of you, our elected officials, ponder what to do regarding funding of technical programs, please consider the aforementioned concerns. These young persons in technical programs deserve your consideration in the choices you make toward funding the programs that train these students who will help maintain America ans the most advanced nation in the world. Each of us, as Americans, depends upon it.

Dr. Marie Theobald
former Executive Director of the Indiana Professional Services Board

If we look at the history of education in Indiana we will find strong links between it and the economy. We have had a strong industrial and agricultural economy for which college and advanced secondary education was really not required.

To be able to continue we need to look at where the pipeline starts to create a qualified workforce. It is regrettable that in Indiana children are not required to start school until age 7. Kindergarten is not required at all, and there is little emphasis on early education.

States around us have developed extensive Community College systems, but Indiana is just beginning to see the need for these systems. Currently IVY Tech is being positioned to fill some of this need. Articulation agreements between all of Indiana's educational institutions needs to be created or improved.

A recent roundtable revealed that more are going to post-secondary institutions than ever before, but the costs of this education are rising to the point of making it unaffordable.

There are major flaws with the "No child left behind" national policy. It tends to look only at the academic side of education using standardized academic test scores, and actually penalized schools who have students who don't measure up, when actually these schools may be doing the best job of preparing students for the workforce.

President Bush took funding for technical education out of the budget, but fortunately the Senate overwhelmingly put it back in when it voted to renew the Perkins Act (support for career and vocational education). Hopefully the House will do the same.

Our state needs to be giving students (particularly those who struggle with pure academics) the opportunity to explore potential career choices as early as Jr. High, and avoid the wasted expense of traditional college education.


Patricia Shutt
Indiana Department of Education - Director Career and Technical Education

While McKenzie considers itself to be the finest Career Center in Indiana, it is actually among the top five. In 1990 a vocational education survey showed that Vocation Education was serving about 20-25% of students. Most of these students were in three categories. Those expected to enter the job market with a HS diploma; Those at risk not to achieve a HS Diploma; and those with special education needs. This has left something of a negative image on Vocational Ed.

The DOE has made a shift away from traditional Vocational Ed. to a restructured approach of Career and Technical Education. The emphasis of this approach is to demonstrate the need for the academic underpinnings of careers being sought, and to therefore incorporated these within the program. Problem solving, problem based learning, and teamwork models are very important foundations of this approach. Correctly implemented, this approach will allow students to have more options.

Currently about 35-40% of students are committed to programs in skilled trades. Senate Bill 200 calls for three types of HS diploma by 2010.
1) An "opt out" minimum diploma could be earned by fulfilling the "core 40" high school credits. Six of these credits would come from a "career academic sequence" and five from "Flex Credits" allowing students to explore career opportunities.
2) The traditional (academic) Core Forty student could achieve a diploma "with Academic Honors" by taking 47 credits with emphasis in arts, math, fine arts, and AP courses. 3) The traditional (academic) Core Forty student could achieve a diploma "with Technical Honors" by taking 47 credits with emphasis in career and technical offerings.

It is somewhat shocking that it is now taking the average student six (not four) years to get a Bachelors degree. This is very expensive.
Despite money spent:
20% say their Bachelors degree did not prepare them.
30% do not have any career goal in mind
52% owe money for education of which:
       66% owe > $10,000
       33% owe > $30,000

This situation would be a lot better if we had better technical education early on. It will take a better understanding and funding at the Federal level to make it happen.

Dr. Ted Foster
Dean of College of Technology - Indiana State University

The college of Technology at Indiana State is growing at a rate of 10% per year. It does not train laborers, but those who direct, manage, and direct technical operations.

I myself only scored 890/1600 on by SAT in 1971, but scored perfectly on the Air Force ASBAB test, (practical visualization of objects and tools). I went on to earn a Doctorate in Technology Management, because of a drive to achieve, and mastered the academics along the way.

I know of a man with an 11th grade education who owns a major think tank as well as his own island.

At the University we can offer some great learning by doing experiences, assembly work cells, Logic Control labs, Aerospace simulators, CAD labs, Rapid Prototyping equipment, and electronics represent some of these. ISU is specializing in developing distance learning opportunities in these areas, and has created a real niche for itself.

We need better education for labor in the secondary schools. We need motivate students moving on to the university. Currently it is shameful that 60% of these coming to the University have to retake HS level math courses. Only 39% of those arriving get a Bachelors degree after six expensive years. Less that 20% achieve their Bachelors in the traditional 4 years. The waste of money on these non goal-oriented students is highly regrettable.