Students are asking for personal finance instruction – more than 85 percent – but only 10 states currently require the course. Another 15 states have mandated it for cohorts graduating in 2030-31. We have been offering financial literacy as an elective for a decade and will soon be making it part of the core curriculum. […]
The need for skilled construction workers is at a critical point, but despite an increase in female workers, about 90 percent of construction workers are still male. The industry will have to close the gender gap if it wants to meet demand. Schools like ours offer an array of CTE career pathways and growing in […]
Growing up, Victoria was always drawing. “Being creative is a large part of my life — it’s a good escape for me,” she said. “I see things differently as an artist. I see the world as a painting, or scenes of a painting, the colors, the textures, the lighting and the feeling it gives you.” […]
Our students are often eager to share their stories about how they found our school and how sometimes we were their last option to graduate. We ask the simple question, “What keeps you coming back to our school?” Here is what a few had to say: The atmosphere, sometimes it’s better than being at home, […]
Educators have long understood the benefits of Career Technical Education (CTE) classes in high school – preparing students for high-wage, high-demand jobs, helping them develop problem-solving skills and even improving graduation completion rates among at-risk students. Superintendent Shellie Hanes says CTE pathways can save families money in numerous ways. “Many CTE programs offer dual enrollment […]
The letter in Patricia Ochoa’s desk is a bit worn from being opened and reread many times over the years. She is a school counselor at Learn4Life and the letter is from a former student who graduated a few years ago. Right before she graduated, the student wrote a letter to Ochoa to say thank […]
What are the chances that a teen mother of two would graduate high school, earn certification as a nursing assistant and be making plans to go to college to pursue a dream of someday going to medical school to become a pediatric oncologist? Pretty low – unless you happen to find a high school like Learn4Life that […]
Since fewer than 10 percent of people who make New Year’s resolutions keep them, it’s a wonder why anyone bothers. Instead, we encourage students to set goals that are more realistic to achieve and that will help motivate teens as they near adulthood. “When students first enroll, we teach them to set both short- and […]
There’s a lot more to starting a bakery business than just the love of making pastries, as Evelyn R. discovered as a high school student enrolled in a culinary CTE (career technical education) program. “With my passion for baking and all the knowledge I learned from the culinary program, I decided to start my own […]
Shop. Spend. Entertain. Eat out. Open presents. Repeat. Somehow our society has transformed the holiday season into two to three months of overindulgences. What happens to kids whose families can’t afford the excesses of the holidays? For many high school students, the season can illicit feelings of inadequacy, insecurity and unfulfilled expectations. Whether it’s the […]