With the end of the school year on the horizon, graduating seniors are preparing for their next chapters. It's an exciting time as these young Hoosiers enter adulthood and face new challenges. From joining the workforce to managing their personal finances, I'm working this session on legislation to help our high school graduates hit the ground running.
According to the Indiana Commission for Higher Education, 53% of high school seniors enrolled in college in 2020. It's clear we have a large portion of high school students who are choosing different pathways upon graduation outside of pursuing traditional two- and four-year degrees. I believe more work-based learning opportunities are needed in schools to help students explore career fields and skill up, so they can enter the workforce more prepared.
This session, I'm supporting House Bill 1002 to incentivize schools and career centers to embrace more earn-and-learn partnerships with local businesses. It would also provide more flexibility for work-based learning and credentials to count toward graduation requirements.
A great example of work-based learning can be found right in our community. The Knox Community School Career Center hosts students from Starke and Marshall counties. This state-of-the-art facility offers an agricultural lab with a greenhouse, a welding lab, classrooms for robotics and other subjects. It also helps students get into internships and offers dual credit from Ivy Tech for certain courses completed.
All Hoosier students could benefit from hands-on-learning opportunities like those in Knox. With this legislation, we would be paving the way for similar opportunities and work-based learning throughout Northwest Indiana and the state.
In addition to skilling up for the workforce, graduates need to be ready to manage their personal finances. To help students budget and avoid monetary pitfalls, like opening high interest credit cards that can easily result in overwhelming debt, legislation I supported would require students to pass a financial literacy course. Concepts like spending and saving, managing a bank account, debt management and loan applications would be taught so that students are better prepared for their financial futures.
With more work-based learning opportunities in our schools and by promoting financial literacy, we can better prepare Hoosier students for success after high school. Both of these bills continue to work their way through the legislative process, and you can track them by visiting iga.in.gov. If you have any questions or would like to share your feedback, please contact me at H16@iga.in.gov or 317-234-9447.
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State Rep. Kendell Culp (R-Rensselaer) represents House District 16,
which includes portions of Jasper, Pulaski, Starke and White counties.
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PHOTO CAPTION: State Rep. Kendell Culp (R-Rensselaer) (left) and Rep. Mark Genda (R-Frankfort) (right) discuss legislation that would prepare students for the workforce Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2023, in the House Chamber. This session, Culp supported efforts to incentivize schools and career centers to embrace more earn-and-learn partnerships with local businesses.
