By Michael McGuire
Dabney S. Lancaster Community College has launched a new program to help high school dropouts get training for better jobs. All it needs is people.
Joyce Broughman, director of the Middle College program, said no one has applied since applications became available Jan. 24, but she understands why.
“It’s just hard to take that first step,” she said.
Broughman said people who drop out of high school often think they won’t be able to go back to school.
Middle College, meant for local 18- to 24-year-olds, begins by testing students for Virginia’s Career Readiness Certificate, a credential that evaluates workplace skills such as applying mathematics, reading for information and locating information. Students then enroll in classes to complete their General Education Diploma (GED).
Community college courses and career pathways would follow. But Broughman, who used to be a career coach in Rockbridge area high schools, said even by just completing the first step, these students will be better off.
“Many employers will not even accept an application unless a certificate is attached,” she said.
Broughman said she hopes to get full funding for the program from the Virginia Community College System and the adult basic education programs in the local school districts. She said nine other Virginia community colleges have similarly funded programs.
The program will be free to students.
Deborah Jarrett, the guidance counselor for Rockbridge County High School’s (RCHS) senior class, said she likes the Middle College idea.
“I’m glad they are trying to grab those people in the community who have been lost and get them educated,” she said.
According to the Virginia Department of Education, 29 students dropped out of Rockbridge County schools last year.
Jarrett said the most common reason for dropping out is a lack of achievement, including missing too many days of school or failing too many courses.
Even with failing grades, RCHS students still have a way to graduate. The school offers a credit recovery program through Class.com, a website that offers online make-up courses for high school credit.
Students can also drop regular classes and study for a GED instead.
Still, some students don’t take advantage of either option. They have jobs they want to keep or young families they have to support, Jarrett said.
She said she thinks those students eventually regret their decision to drop out.
“I wonder how long it takes kids to realize, after struggling to find work and working minimum wage jobs, that it would have been better to have just gotten a high school diploma,” Jarrett said.
Broughman is counting on that realization.
“I’m hoping that the folks who are aware of this program will believe in themselves enough to pick up the phone,” she said.
Broughman said anyone interested may apply until the start of the program in mid-August.