Less than a week after addressing the Lowndes County School District Board of Trustees, the Golden Triangle Development LINK made the same pitch to Columbus city schools Monday night.
Macaulay Whitaker, vice president of internal and external affairs with the LINK, encouraged the Columbus Municipal School District Board of Trustees to adopt the WorkKeys test for juniors and seniors in the district this spring. WorkKeys is a test developed by the ACT that measures the train-ability of high schoolers and their potential to enter the workforce.
Whitaker told city school board members the LINK would subsidize half of the test’s $50 cost for each student in the district who signs up. The LINK proposed to the district that the WorkKeys test be administered on-campus by officials from East Mississippi Community College.
“We need to create a pipeline of skilled workers,” Whitaker told the board. “We would like to build this pipeline in our schools.”
The CMSD board did not vote on adopting the test Monday, but superintendent Dr. Phillip Hickman told The Dispatch the district has been working with the LINK and is excited about the test. It has not yet been determined when the board will vote on whether or not to conduct the test on campus.
Whitaker told The Dispatch the LINK has been working with all the public districts within the Golden Triangle, and they will be asking districts in Clay and Oktibbeha counties to adopt the test next fall. The deal for all schools will be the same: The LINK will offer $5,000 to cover half of the test cost and provide administrators from EMCC to give out the test at high schools throughout the area. Whitaker has encouraged the schools not to use grant money to pay the other half of the student test fees; the LINK believes students will care more if they have to pay a portion of the cost. Students who pass the WorkKeys with a silver score or higher (the scores are: bronze; silver; gold and platinum) will be encouraged to take a Basic Manufacturing Skills at EMCC to prepare them to enter the workforce or move on to school.
“It helps students further their opportunities, helps industries recruit and helps future industries decide to come,” Whitaker said.
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