Youth Development Reports

PPC Special Report: Promising Pathways to Careers

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Throughout Pennsylvania, new technologies are creating new career fields and changing traditional ones. Every young person can find a career to be passionate about, whether it requires an industry credential, associate’s degree or a doctorate.

Unfortunately, young people and their families rarely know about the jobs emerging from the new economy, or the education and skills needed to attain them. One solution to this dilemma is work-based learning – diverse methods and strategies for exposing young people to career possibilities, immersing them in the work world, and developing action plans leading to specific career goals. Work-based learning spans from middle school into postsecondary education, providing structured experiences and exposing young people to a range of occupations and careers.

Re-engaging High School Dropouts as a Growth Strategy for PA

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Pennsylvania is home to more than 30,000 teenagers who leave high school every year without the most basic education credential – the diploma. Every school day, 166 Pennsylvania high school students drop out and set themselves up for a life of insufficient earnings and possible government dependency because they have failed to acquire the knowledge and skills necessary to earn a self/family-sustaining wage or compete in a 21st century marketplace.

Today, there are nearly 120,000 high school dropouts ages 16-24 in Pennsylvania. This group costs the Commonwealth money through lost revenue, increased crime and social spending. Pennsylvania must do more to help young people who have dropped out of high school re-engage in educational opportunities that result in a high school diploma or GED coupled with a postsecondary and/or industry-based credential leading to the ultimate goal of self/family-sustaining wage occupations. It’s not only good policy for our young people, it is sound economic policy for Pennsylvania as well.

The High Cost of Higher Education

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Why is Postsecondary Education so Important?
Continuing education after high school shouldn't be an impossible dream for young people. A generation ago, a high school diploma guaranteed a good paying job with benefits and a pension after retirement. Today, that lifestyle is hard to come by with just a high school diploma. In the 21st century economy, jobs that provide family-sustaining wages require postsecondary education.

Dropping Back In: Re-engaging Out-of-School Youth

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Twice As Many High School Dropouts Unemployed & Living In Poverty Than Diploma-Holding Peers
PA Partnerships for Children Report Details Economic Implications of Dropping out of School and Outlines Strategies to Re-engage Dropouts.
Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children (PPC) today released a new report that shows that young people who drop out of high school are twice as likely to live in poverty as youth who have received a high school diploma, and three times as likely as youth who have attended some college or earned an associate’s degree.

Dropping Back In: Re-engaging Out-of-School Youth – which also shows that twice as many high school dropouts are unemployed as their diploma-holding peers – recommends state and local policy strategies and initiatives to re-connect high school dropouts with their education. The report details income, unemployment and poverty rates based on educational attainment from data available through the Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry and the 2007 American Community Survey of the U.S. Census.

Earnings and access to employment are directly linked to the amount of education a person possesses. In Pennsylvania, young people who drop out of school can expect their annual earnings to be less than half those of a college graduate with a bachelor’s degree (roughly $19,000 vs. $45,000) – and their likelihood of living in poverty to be six times higher (21 percent vs. 3 percent). Many students don’t consider the long-term repercussions of dropping out such as increased unemployment, less earning potential, poverty, and reliance on public assistance.

Ensuring Success for All High School Graduates

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This month, more than 95,000 Pennsylvania high school graduates from the class of 2007 plan to begin their postsecondary education. Some will attend 2– or 4– year colleges, some will go to community colleges or technical schools, and some will go directly into workforce training or apprentice programs.

How prepared are they to succeed? Will they need to take remedial courses? Will they return to postsecondary education after their first year? Will they graduate or complete their training program and gain a degree or credential? Will they have successful careers that provide a family-sustaining wage?

Young people’s options and opportunities are severely limited if they do not have the academic background necessary to pursue education and training beyond high school. No student should graduate from high school in Pennsylvania without achieving the skills needed to continue his or her education and job training.

Preparing PA Youth for Success in a 21st Century Economy

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In order to compete in a 21st century global economy, Pennsylvania needs a highly-educated and proficient workforce. To prepare this workforce, Pennsylvania must take the steps necessary to assure that all youth have a sound academic background and highly-developed soft skills (communication, thinking and problem-solving) that are required to be successful in the new economy. All students today need rigorous academic courses and career exploration opportunities in high school to adequately prepare them for postsecondary education and 21st century occupations.

Young people who are preparing for college or work require a similar foundation. High school students who plan to enter workforce training programs after they graduate need solid academic skills similar to those needed by students planning to enter college, according to a new study conducted by ACT, Inc., a developer of tests for college admissions and workplace readiness skills. The findings suggest that the math and reading skills needed to be ready for success in workforce training programs are comparable to those needed for success in the first year of college.

In addition, the American Diploma Project, a multi-state initiative that aims to better prepare high school students for college and careers, reported that employers agree that employees looking to advance in their companies should have high levels of aptitude in math and English skills.

But too many young people graduate from high school lacking the academic foundation and skills required to be successful in postsecondary education and the workforce. Many more drift away from school without any real means of reconnecting. Numerous young people find themselves out of school and lacking employment, without the skills or opportunities necessary to get back on track. In Pennsylvania, one in 11 16-to-21-year-olds is not working and not in school. These idle youth may lack the resources to reconnect to their lives, but they don’t lack the motivation. Research shows they understand leaving school was a grave mistake but find themselves without the means to re-engage in their communities.

How well is Pennsylvania preparing all of its young people to be contributing members of society, capable of earning family-sustaining wages one day? What does it mean to be “ready” for college, work and life? Furthermore, what steps should we take as a Commonwealth and as a society to assure that all young people succeed in this new economy?

Risk & Protective Factors Special Report

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Most Pennsylvanians likely would agree that it is important to recognize the good grades and good deeds of today’s youth, to show awareness of; approve of and appreciate their hard work. So, one would hope that today’s teenagers feel that their parents and teachers encourage them, support them, cheer them on for a job well done, right?

Though we may think this support of our youth is overt, or at least implied, teens tell us their experiences are quite different.

A survey of about 75,000 Pennsylvania teens shows many of them do not feel supported or protected by their schools, families, neighbors and communities. The Pennsylvania Youth Survey (PAYS), conducted in 2003 by the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency, in cooperation with the Pennsylvania Department of Education, obtained data from a representative sample of 6th, 8th, 10th, and 12th graders in urban, rural, and suburban communities in every region of the state.

The PAYS survey queried students about “protective factors” in their lives, such as clear standards for behavior communicated by families, schools and communities; strong bonds with adults who hold healthy beliefs; and an investment in positive lines of action such as school, service and work. These protective factors “can buffer young people from risks and promote positive youth development”1 and help smooth the journey from youth to adulthood.

Fully 45 percent of students responded that they are not praised by teachers for good work, that their teachers do not tell parents about good work, and that they do not feel safe in school. Home is where youth feel most appreciated for their accomplishments. Still, 25 percent reported that their parents do not express pride in their accomplishments or that they enjoy spending time with their parents. About one-third said they do not feel strong enough family attachments to share thoughts and feelings with parents.

A recent national survey echoes some bleak opinions of Pennsylvania’s youth. In August, nearly one-third of all teens surveyed nationwide said “now is a bad time to be growing up.”2

Whether we agree with these perceptions or not is irrelevant. What matters is what our kids perceive, and this despair is a part of their lives. If they do not feel safe and supported as young people, how can we expect them to transition successfully to become well-adjusted adult members of society?

The PAYS survey also identified a number of “risk factors” in communities, families, schools, and peer groups. These factors – such as the availability of drugs and firearms; low neighborhood attachment; poverty, and a lack of commitment to school – are “known to increase the likelihood that a student will engage in one or more problem behaviors.”3 Decades of research supports the view that alcohol, tobacco, and drug use, delinquency, poor school achievement, and other negative outcomes for young people are associated with the presence of a number of risk factors.4

About three out of ten teens (31 percent) reported it would be easy to obtain alcohol, tobacco, drugs, or handguns, including twice as many (65 percent) 12th graders. About 22 percent said neighbors would not think it is wrong for students to use marijuana, drink alcohol, or smoke, and nine percent reported they live in communities that are unsafe and in which there are crimes, drug dealing, fights, abandoned buildings, and graffiti. Young people need family guidance, but 10 percent reported poor family supervision (or lack of clear rules, questions about homework, or knowledge of the student’s whereabouts).

When there is an absence of hope and the belief that they are not supported, young people tend to think less about the risks they take, perhaps reasoning, “Who cares, anyway?” The fact that kids aren’t buffered from risks means they have a more difficult time transitioning to adulthood. And we want all youth to be ready for whatever life throws their way: to be a productive member of society, a solid citizen and to earn a family-sustaining wage.

What is PPC doing to help smooth the transition from youth to adulthood? We are dedicating resources to analyzing the conditions of teenagers in Pennsylvania; convening a coalition of key stakeholders to develop and advance a public policy agenda; and reaching out to policymakers at the state and federal level to partner with PPC to improve chances that youth in PA will transition successfully to adulthood.

Research shows that young adults need the following to successfully transition to adulthood:

• An education that prepares them for the rigors of college or a competitive labor market; they need skills that create the potential to earn wages that will support themselves and a family someday;
• To avoid risky behaviors such as illegal drug use in order to become healthy, well-adjusted adults;
• Strong interpersonal relationships with friends and family who support their growth and achievements;
• Strong connections to the community that forge a sense of belonging.

The absence of any of these key factors creates challenges that impede a successful transition; plus the weaker the support system for a teen, the greater the risk.

But there also must be optimism and anticipation for what the future holds. There must be an expectation by our young people that their parents, teachers and community members support them and care about the choices they make.

Just how do we create more support and help minimize the risk factors in young people’s lives? That is a question that all of us should be asking: parents, teachers, policymakers and community members alike. It’s not just a government problem with a government solution, or a classroom issue with an education fix. It’s also a people issue with a human remedy. They are our youth and we must put their needs first and encourage them every step of the way.

1 Channing Bete Company. Pennsylvania Youth Survey Report, 2004.
2 National Teen Comparison Survey, The Washington Post, Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, Harvard University
3 Channing Bete Company. Pennsylvania Youth Survey Report. 2004, p. 44
4 Hawkins, Catalano, and Miller. “Risk and Protective Factors for Alcohol and Other Drug Problems in Adolescence and Early Adulthood:
Implications for Substance Abuse Prevention,” Psychological Bulletin, 112, 1992, pp. 64-105.