Science Magazine recently featured a story about a Chicago utility company and its executives donating money to a open a math and science charter high school.
The company hopes to both do good in the community and prepare students for the types of positions the company knows that it needs to fill in the future.
According to the article, the executives are taking a hands-on approach to the school and monitoring its success.
U.S. Chamber President and CEO Tom Donohue had a column this week about the lack of financial education in American public schools. He said that this leads to poor financial decisions for adults who do not know better.
Donohue writes, "For too long, America's education system has failed to equip students with the knowledge they need to make good financial decisions. An alarming number of adults are unable to balance a checkbook, understand the terms of a basic mortgage, realize the benefits of compound interest, and properly manage credit card debt. Today we are suffering the consequences."
Tennessee's State Board of Education this year added personal finance to the curriculum for high school students, along with additional courses in math, science and foreign languages.
Knoxville's workforce and education initiatives are being noticed by bloggers around the country.
Ed Morrison of Cleveland, Ohio, praises in his "Brewed Fresh Daily" blog the Knoxville Chamber and local business community's initiatives in workforce development and education.
Morrison writes, "When it comes to leadership in education and workforce, here’s what chamber involvement looks like. The Knoxville Chamber and its volunteers have developed a framework of the skills and attributes that will be required to ensure the economic advancement of this area. They are now beginning to build an education process that drives in that direction."
The (Maryville) Daily Times recently had an article about Dr. Matt Murray, Chairman of the Economic Development Board, who wrote a book called "Education Crossroads" about the economic and social benefits of a good education.
Ultimately, according to the Daily Times, the book describes that, "a better-educated workforce means greater regional prosperity. The book found labor force participation and population growth are stronger in counties where educational attainment is high."
The News Sentinel, in its weekly series of community columnists on education, carried a piece from Mitch Steenrod, senior vice president and chief financial officer of Pilot Corp., who discussed raising the bar in academic preparedness for students.
He writes that the current market in East Tennessee hits the mark for some industries. But, he says that many of the higher wage providers are choosing other areas due to the available workforce. East Tennessee, he says, lacks an abundance of workers with the necessary skills to meet these companies' needs.
Steenrod finishes, "This retooling and re-engineering of the educational curriculum must begin and it must begin quickly. The bar must be raised in the educational high jump. We need to continually challenge our youth to set the next goal after accomplishing the immediate goal. We need to instill a learning environment that continually pushes for higher accomplishment."
The television program "Good Morning America" today highlighted a documentary called "2 Million Minutes" that looks at how high school students in the United States, China and India allocate time during their four high-school years. The title refers to that period of time.
Ultimately, the film showed that students in India and China were more prepared for careers in math, science and engineering and that more emphasis in their lives was placed on academic excellence. In America, in contrast, Bob Crompton, the filmmaker, notes that emphasis is placed on sports and other skills.
"What I saw in the K-12 schools absolutely shocked me in both India and China. … I became very concerned about the competitiveness of my own daughters' education," Compton said on "Good Morning America." "Between the cultures, students allocate their time quite differently. The difference is the parental expectations of the students, the community's expectations."
The Greater Knoxville Business Journal this month had a column about how Roane State Community College, along with other academic, research and economic development groups, is proposing a center for nanotechnology workforce development.
The center would recruit and educate skilled workers who could assist the nanotechnology businesses in the Innovation Valley area. These workers would not necessarily need advanced degrees, but rather a knowledge of the processes being run at these companies.
A preliminary proposal for this project is due in April. Nanotechnology touches many businesses by way of everything from computer chips to cosmetics. Because of the wide variety of technologies, the prospects for jobs in this field are diverse.
Members of the Knoxville business community and Knox County Schools are partnering to initiate students' interest in math and science fields.
In January, the Knoxville Chamber, Tennessee Society of Professional Engineers, Knox County Schools and the Partnership for Great Schools launched an Internet-based clearinghouse at Vols4STEM.org which will pair educators with science, technology, engineering and mathematics professionals to share expertise and work with students on projects relating to their field.
They recently held meetings to organize the project and gain volunteer professionals for the partnerships.
"Vols4STEM is a model for aligning the work force and education," said Cheryl Kershaw, executive director of the Great Schools Partnership.
Note: This release was sent from the University of Tennessee.
The Professional MBA Program -- the University of Tennessee's 16-month weekend MBA program for working professionals -- is holding an informational session for students interested in starting classes in August 2008.
The session will be held at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 19, on the seventh floor of Stokely Management Center on the UT Knoxville campus.
The priority deadline for applications is April 10.
Classes are held primarily on Saturdays on the Knoxville campus and Tuesday nights online.
UT has been recognized as a pioneer in management education by Business Week and a leader among the "new breed of MBA's" from Industry Week.
For more information, see their web site or contact Ruth Topley at 865-974-1660 or rtopley@utk.edu.
The Technology Center Directors from the State of Tennessee voted unanimously for all Tennessee Scholars to get free tuition to attend any Technology Center in the state.
This vote is important because this will help Tennessee educate students in areas that will eventually help fill high-skilled, high-demand jobs.
Ruth Woodall, Director of the Tennessee Scholars program for the Tennessee Chamber said that the program will give extra money to students for books if the student requested it and could show need.
There is a local Tennessee Technology Center in Knoxville. For more information on the programs offered, visit the Tennessee Technology Center website here.
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