School to WorkPrograms

Piedmont Triad SchoolDistricts

Preparing Students for the 21

Century Workplace

The K-12 school districts in the Piedmont Triad are committed to building a seamless pathwayfrom the classroom to productive careers for all students. This commitment ensures that programs are in place to introduce students to concepts and skills needed to succeed in the 21

century workplace. This publication provides a sampling of school to work programs in thePiedmont Triad school districts that use curriculum materials, specialized learning experiences,unique school/business partnerships, internships and mentorships to develop knowledge andskills in real world contexts. This is a first step in a series of regional collaborative endeavorsleading to enriched school to work processes in Piedmont Triad schools.The North Carolina State Board of Education has stated as their mission “every public schoolstudent will graduate from high school, globally competitive for work and post secondaryeducation and prepared for life in the 21

century.” This covenant to develop “Future ReadyStudents” has been embraced by Piedmont Triad school district leaders who incorporate programs and services to make workplace readiness a requirement for all students. There is anexpectation that our high school graduates demonstrate proficiency in a wide range of technicalskills including critical reading, writing, proofreading, oral communication skills, problemsolving, decision making and technology literacy. Additionally, general professional practicessuch as workplace ethics, interpersonal skills, attendance and the quality presentation of self andone’s own work are integrated into the curriculum daily.The school to work programs presented in this publication are a catalyst to helping studentsachieve workplace readiness so that they can reach for the job they want, not settle for the jobthey have to take.Frances F. Jones, Ed.D.Executive Director Piedmont Triad Education Consortium