EEDA to Prepare Students for Transition from School to Work
Education and businesses in South Carolina will merge together to provide a successful and progressive future for students with the SC Education and Economic Development Act. The EEDA will be utilized to prepare students to become career oriented and become aware of the social and economic world before graduating high school.
Governor Mark Sanford signed the EEDA on May 27, 2005. The EEDA will provide career awareness activities in elementary school, career exploration in middle school, and career guidance in high school. The EEDA sets up a system called Personal Pathways to Success. This system gives students the opportunity to build working skills and provides guidance and experience in the South Carolina economy.
Personal Pathways have been proven to increase high school graduation rates and prepare students for college work. Personal Pathways will provide individual attention to students in which career specialists & more guidance counselors will be hired. Every student will have a say in his or her future. Students at risk for dropping out are identified early. Personal Pathways maintains the state’s established high school requirements along with seven electives. All students must declare a career major in one cluster of study. South Carolina’s 16 career clusters include Arts, AV Technology and Communications, Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources, Architecture and Construction, Business, Management, and Administration, Education and Training Finance, Government and Public Administration, Health Science, Hospitality and Tourism, Human Services, Information Technology, Manufacturing, Marketing, Sales, and Service, Public Safety and Security, Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics, Transportation, Distribution, and Logistics.
In the eight grade students and their parent (s) or guardian (s) discuss individual graduation plans with counselors. IGP’s detail their personal education and career strategies. IGP’s specify students’ choices of cluster, major, post secondary goals, high school course workout, etc. Students along with their parents review these choices and make any necessary changes.
The EEDA along with Personal Pathways to Success will prove to be a positive addition for the students of South Carolina and the state as a whole. These programs will boost students’ morale, give them endless options for success, improve academic achievement and give students hands on experience in economics and business.
The state of South Carolina will benefit from a highly qualified work force. Its capabilities as a global competitor will increase and adapt to rapid economic change. The EEDA has passed the General Assembly but there is only enough funding for the first year of implementation. We must all appeal to our legislature to ensure that these programs are made possible for critically needed improvement in our educational and economical systems.
