Education and business leaders yesterday applauded House Speaker Robert A. DeLeo's proposal to create a STEM Starter Academy at Bay State community colleges to help put students on the path to job readiness.
In a speech before the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce, DeLeo said that by 2018, Massachusetts will have 300,000 job openings, some of which can be filled by community college graduates.
But 65 percent of these students are enrolled in at least one remedial course, said Richard Freeland, the state's commissioner of higher education. And many students don't successfully complete the required courses or avoid taking subjects like math altogether and therefore never graduate, DeLeo said, citing a study by the Chronicle of Higher Education.
"For our economy to thrive, that needs to change," he said.
Although still in the conceptual stage, DeLeo's proposed STEM Starter Academy would be an intensive program to bring students up to speed so they can go on to more advanced training in science, technology, engineering and math.
Instead of meeting for one hour just three times a week, courses might meet two or three hours five days a week, an immersion model that has proven successful in language instruction, Freeland said.
"Many opportunities for students graduating from community colleges are in STEM fields, but students who enter community colleges are often weak in math and are therefore starting out behind," said Andre Mayer, senior vice president of research at the Associated Industries of Massachusetts. "They need a lot of education to bring them up to speed, so finding a way to accelerate that process is important."
Chamber President Paul Guzzi called the plan, which DeLeo has proposed funding with gaming license revenues, "innovative and on point."
"This initiative would provide community college students with additional training in the skills that many employers are looking for," Guzzi said. "This will help better align community college training with workforce needs, which is critical to sustaining our region's economic growth."
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