As of March 2018, there were 6.6 million job vacancies in the US, signaling a shortage of skilled workers. Furthermore, a 2017 McKinsey survey of young people and employers reported that 40 percent of employers said a lack of skills was the principal reason for entry-level job vacancies, which demonstrates that the current education and training…

As employers scan the current workforce and anticipate future workforce needs, they frequently find that employees are not well-equipped with core content knowledge and 21st century workplace competencies, the combination of which the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation defines as "deeper learning." The cumulative effect of these…

This annual newsletter contains updates on the latest CCRC research, new publications and details of upcoming presentations at major conferences. The feature article in this issue, "Addressing the Needs of Underprepared Students," by Thomas Bailey, summarizes the discussion found in the paper "Challenge and Opportunity: Rethinking…

Kentucky employers (249 of 800 surveyed) identified adaptability, teamwork, communication, and problem solving as entry-level and advancement skills. Over 50 percent did no preemployment testing. Responses indicated areas needing change: training focused on workplace basics, accessible training delivery, and preemployment assessment services. (SK)

The People Program is an educational effort being conducted at 20 worksites throughout Kentucky with more than 4,000 employee contacts. Part 1 of the People Program consists of a series of six 15-minute programs discussing problems experienced by parents of young children, and presented to them during their lunch break. Two main themes are…

An opinionnaire/questionnaire was developed to discover the types of information superintendents and other administrators look at most carefully when reviewing materials sent by applicants for teaching positions. Responses were obtained from superintendents of urban, rural, and small town school districts in Kentucky. A vast majority of the…

A study determined employer perceptions of single parents/displaced homemakers' skills after receiving training through special training centers across Kentucky. Centers were funded through the Carl D. Perkins Vocational Education Act. Employer perceptions of single parents/displaced homemakers in comparison to other employees was also…

Rural school districts where ethnocentrism, traditionalism, primary group preference, and social conservatism form the dominant value system could be contributing to their own ineffectiveness through their patterns of personnel selection. This study investigated the influence of rural values on components of personnel selection and the tacit…

A project was designed to develop and field test a job and career placement and follow-up system to serve as a model for state-wide implementation in vocational education programs. Third year objectives were (1) to expand the field test of the placement and follow-up system to six regional satellite test sites utilizing selected high schools and…

A study compared the cost effectiveness of secondary child care and commercial foods occupational home economics programs in Kentucky. Identified as dependent variables in the study were program effectiveness, cost efficiency, and cost effectiveness ratio. Program expenditures, community size, and program age were considered as independent…

This project report includes a brief narrative, the model placement and followup system developed for statewide implementation in vocational education programs, and an employer survey. The guide for the establishment and operation of a school-based placement and followup system is divided into two sections: general information and operational…

The joint supervisory and teacher education staffs developed criteria and surveyed needed agricultural competencies as a basis for course building. Teacher educators developed unit outlines for pilot programs in off-farm agricultural occupations conducted in Lafayette, Shelby County, Daviess County, and Reidland high schools. A quasi-experimental…

A study identified health occupations education programs currently offered to handicapped students and health occupations positions now occupied by handicapped employees throughout the state of Kentucky. In addition, the study allowed for assessment of respondent's attitudes toward educating and working with handicapped individuals. Of 1649…

A study evaluated the Kentucky statewide school-to-work (STW) system through surveys of 633 K-12 teachers, phone interviews with 395 employer-participants in STW activities, and 328 randomly drawn employers. Data analysis identified six themes relevant to improving and sustaining STW: (1) working toward bringing program implementation to scale at…

Components of a project to assess the reasons for the imbalance of women in administrative positions in vocational education were research, synthesization, and evaluation. Phase 1 of the five-phase research study, a literature review, identified internal and external barriers. Mail surveys in phases 2 and 3 identified attitudes, perceptions, and…