HOUSE RESOLUTION NO. 92-4729, by Representatives Casada, Franklin, Neher, Riley, Winsley, Beck, Edmondson, Betrozoff, Paris and Broback

     WHEREAS, All students in the state of Washington need to have the opportunity to develop a skill that will help them enter the job market; and

     WHEREAS, Nearly twenty-five percent of the students in our schools drop out before graduating from high school; and

     WHEREAS, When the results of education offer tangible rewards such as a job and saleable skills, dropout rates are likely to be lowered; and

     WHEREAS, Only between twenty and thirty percent of the students graduating from high school will earn a baccalaureate degree before entering the work force; and

     WHEREAS, All students should leave high school with workplace competencies and saleable skills that are transferable to a job or profession; and

     WHEREAS, Our students can anticipate a minimum of five careers in the quickly changing and evolving job market of the twenty-first century; and

     WHEREAS, Many employers find that their prospective employees lack the saleable skills vital to success in the marketplace; and

     WHEREAS, Forty percent of the job opportunities for young workers are with small firms that cannot afford formal training programs; and

     WHEREAS, These firms need entry level workers who come equipped with academic and vocational skills; and

     WHEREAS, Partnerships between business and labor and the schools increase the relevance of school courses teaching saleable skills; and

     WHEREAS, There are examples of successful partnerships in Washington and other states, including apprenticeship programs, career days, job coaches from the business community instructing students on how to find jobs, schools working with business and labor to develop curriculum that will better prepare students for real life work experiences, after-school electronics programs for middle school students, employers designing job programs for at-risk students, classrooms in the community programs, and mentorships between local business operations and students;

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, By the House of Representatives of the state of Washington, that each school district and community in the state of Washington be encouraged to inform students and parents about programs in the school and community that will help students learn saleable skills; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That each school district and community in the state of Washington be encouraged to work in partnership to promote and implement programs that will help students develop saleable skills; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That each school district in partnership with the community recognize that saleable skills are a desired outcome for the education system and curriculum needs to be designed and implemented for every student to be able to leave high school with a saleable skill.