listen to this articleAccording to an Education Forward survey, 90% of voters on both sides of the aisle agree that postsecondary education improves quality of life.
Education Forward works with Achieve60Az to disseminate information and create opportunities for residents while benefiting the state's economy.
“I think a few things happened in this poll that we're interested in,” said Richard Nickel, CEO of Education Forward. “We found that there was broad bipartisan agreement. If you listen to any political show, you wouldn't expect everyone to agree on anything.”
Achieve60Az is working to ensure that 60% of residents aged 25-64 will earn a degree, certificate or apprenticeship by 2030. This initiative was founded to create a better, more profitable workforce by educating employees.
Post-secondary education is not limited to education obtained at university, but also includes apprenticeships, trade schools, and other qualifications obtained through training and classes.
“These are voters, you know, three-quarters of them are demanding more action from our state,” Nickel said. “Our state needs to do more with its candidates, and all elected officials need to realize this is a winning issue.”
As Nickel noted in the Arizona Capitol Times Morning Scoop, Arizona could add $5 billion a year to the state's economy if it meets the goals set by Achieve60Az.
“Businesses are the end consumers of educational products,” said Monica Villalobos, president and CEO of the Arizona Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. “We need to make this part of our economic strategy to achieve a stronger economy.”
Nickel said business leaders support having an educated workforce.
“Traditionally, business leaders have always understood that workforce development is equivalent to education development. “They need to really get behind that message,” Nickel said, adding, “They just need to get behind that message. “We need to advocate not only by speaking out, but also by using our influence to encourage elected officials and candidates to invest in education.”
According to Education Forward Az, Arizona's enrollment rate is 48% out of 60% in 2022, and it needs an additional 500,000 students to reach its goal.
“Arizona voters recognize the value of post-high school and want state policy, business and education leaders to do more to provide post-secondary training opportunities,” Nickel said. he said.
Over the past six years, Achieve60Az has improved 6 percentage points toward its goal. Each percentage point equates to the award of approximately 40,000 degrees or certificates, Nickell said.
“Pursuing the goal of earning each percentage point while bringing these degrees to thousands of new people will have tremendous economic and social impact,” Nickel said. .
Polls show that 96% of Arizonans believe all students should have access to a quality education.
“Arizonas agree on far more than they disagree on the state's most important issues, and they want action on these issues,” said President and CEO of Arizona Future Center. (CEO) Sybil Francis said during a Morning Scoop discussion.
With overwhelming support for higher education, the purpose of the poll was to draw legislators' attention to issues that Arizonans care about and agree with.
“We should be guided by data in everything we do. We hear too much about hot button problems, but we don't talk about solutions,” Francis said. Told.
Nickel said it's nearly impossible to get 60% of voters to agree on a topic.
“They literally got 86% of Arizonans to agree that the sky is blue, got 86% to support this goal and understand its value, and almost 75% to secure a higher share. “It's impossible to ask us to work harder to ensure that 'Arizonas have the opportunity to earn that degree or certification, and it's an obligation,'” Nickel said.
Polls show that more than 90% of voters agree that expanding dual enrollment programs and expanding access to career training would be beneficial to achieving the goal.
The high school offers a dual enrollment program. Students can earn college credit and high school credit at the same time in selected classes.
“Employers are educators, and educators are employers. That's the most important message I took from this poll,” Villalobos said.
Nickel said Arizona has the lowest counselor-to-student ratio in the nation. According to the American Counselor Association, there were approximately 651 students per counselor in 2021-2022.
According to a poll, more than 80% of voters think there should be more counselors in schools. Students receive post-secondary information on all avenues through their counselors.
“Counselors really have the opportunity to be the most helpful to students as far as thinking about what they want to do after high school and how to get there,” Nickel said. “All we lack is the scale to make it happen and the ability to do it. Many students around our state don’t have access to the information, data, advice and counseling they need. Is not.”
Mr. Nickel believes that as long as the state continues to work towards its Achieve60AZ goals with the support of voters, the economic and social benefits will continue to be significant.
“As long as we grow, we know that the impact of pursuing that goal will be worth all the effort we put in,” Nickel said. Ta.
