The Benjamin Center for Public Policy Initiatives and the Ulster County School Boards Association release sixth policy brief in an effort to continue the conversation about collaboration among Ulster County school districts

A 2020 Vision for Public Education in Ulster County, a broad ranging effort to support innovation and positive change in Ulster County schooling, is pleased to release its sixth policy brief; “Career Readiness” for Employment-Seeking High School Graduates in Ulster County. This report explores how Ulster County school districts are acting to meet the goal of producing career ready high school graduates.

Gerald Benjamin, director of The Benjamin Center, said, “We are delighted to be releasing another report in our series of A 2020 Vision for Public Education in Ulster County policy briefs, developed with the county school boards association and designed to advance collaborative regional approaches to assuring the delivery of quality education. The ideas in “Career Readiness” for Employment-Seeking High School Graduates in Ulster County are especially important to better assuring Ulster’s future in a rapidly chaining social and economic environment.”

According to Benjamin, the report examines the meaning of “career readiness,” data on the employment market in Ulster County and the Hudson Valley, and the “skills gap” identified by employers. The paper closes with descriptions of some of the exciting initiatives that school districts in Ulster County have developed to respond to this challenge

The A 2020 Vision for Public Education in Ulster County partnership between The Benjamin Center for Public Policy Initiatives at SUNY New Paltz and the Ulster County School Boards Association seeks to promote countywide, regional thinking among the eight Ulster County school districts—Ellenville, Highland, Kingston, New Paltz, Onteora, Rondout Valley, Saugerties and Wallkill—with the goal of enriching educational opportunity for students and managing service delivery as efficiently as possible. Other policy briefs published through this initiative include: An Agenda for Change through Countywide Collaboration; Later School Start Times for Adolescents; Regional Pupil Transportation: The Promise of Collaboration; Bell Schedules and Calendars, and Food Services: The Potential for Sharing among Ulster County School Districts

About the Benjamin Center
Independently and in collaboration with local governments, business and not-for-profits in the Hudson Valley, The Benjamin Center’s research mission is to: conduct studies on topics of regional interest; bring visibility and focus to these matters; foster communities working together to better serve citizenry; and advance the public interest in our region.

If you are interested in being on the mailing list for reports from The Benjamin Center, please send an email with your address to wilkinsc@newpaltz.edu. More information about the Benjamin Center is available online.